Fri 8 Apr 2016 In: New Zealand Daily News View at Wayback View at NDHA
Ihaia Gillman-Harris Leonard Nattrass-Bergquist, one of the two youths charged with murdering a gay man in an Auckland motel, was placed in a 'suicide suit' and detained in a police 'suicide cell' after being arrested following the attack which the crown alleged led to the man's death. Questioning the arresting officer in the High Court at Auckland this morning Nattrass-Bergquist's defense lawyer suggested that his client was of a nervous disposition and exhibited symptoms such as frequently scratching and touching his face and body. The arresting officer said he noticed no such behaviour. The crown prosecutors this morning showed the court photos taken after Nattrass-Bergquist and Beauen Wallace-Loretz, both aged 17 at the time of the December 2014 attack, were separately arrested. He drew attention to a number of scratch marks and bruises on each defendant's upper body and arms. The court has also heard from a digital forensics expert that a pornographic video, which it is alleged Gillman-Harris played and which it is said by the defense contributed to the situation which saw Gillman-Harris violently beaten, was accessed through a video streaming service, Pornhub, and was played for approximately 90 seconds during which no nudity or sexual activity occurred on screen. The two defendants appeared quiet and relaxed in court with Wallace-Loretz several times smiling to and acknowledging the presence in the public gallery of a group of young men dressed in almost-matching white shirts and black ties.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Friday, 8th April 2016 - 12:43pm