-
Ewen Macdonald in court - Source: ONE News
Suppressions remain in place over three criminal charges
admitted by Ewen Macdonald.
Macdonald, 32, was last month acquitted of murdering his
brother-in-law Scott Guy over a dispute about the Aorangi Rd family
farm.
A district court judge has declined to sentence Ewen Macdonald on six criminal charges he has admitted - three of which remain suppressed.
Instead he sent him to the High Court to be sentenced by the murder trial judge, Justice Simon France.
The murder trial jury in the High Court at Wellington heard how Macdonald and former farm hand Callum Boe, 23, poached deer from a neighbouring farm and destroyed property on Scott and his wife Kylee Guy's side of the farm. Macdonald has pleaded guilty to charges relating to the poaching and vandalism.
But the existence of three other charges was suppressed and only revealed the day after the trial. Further details of those charges cannot be revealed.
This afternoon Macdonald made a brief appearance in the Palmerston North District Court where a sentencing date was to be set for him.
But Judge David Smith said Macdonald's lawyer, Greg King, and the Crown had requested that he decline jurisdiction and have the matters transferred to the High Court.
"The reasons given for the request are that [trial judge] Justice Simon France is familiar with the facts and circumstances surrounding your offending," the judge told Macdonald, who stood in the dock looking away from the public gallery.
Judge Smith said in the overall interests of justice and because both the defence and prosecution had asked him to refer the matter on, he would.
"I'm prepared to accept that indication and exercise my discretion to decline jurisdiction."
The High Court in Wellington has this afternoon confirmed Macdonald will appear for sentencing on the six charges on September 14.
Suppression orders would remain in place on the three charges the murder trial did not hear about.
The jury did get told about the shooting of two deer on Colyton farmer Craig Hocken's property overnight on December 30 and 31, 2006.
Macdonald and Boe took and disposed of the carcasses.
On October 24, 2008, the pair also burned down and old house on a removal trailer ready to be taken away from Scott and Kylee Guy's side of the family farm.
And overnight on January 30 and 31, 2009, Macdonald and Boe destroyed the inside of the Guys' newly built house, with Macdonald using a splitting axe.
Nobody from the Guy family was present in court today, but Macdonald's parents Kerry and Marlene were in court.