David Benbow during the second trial in August last year. Photo: Stuff / Pool / Iain McGregor
A Christchurch man will be sentenced today for the 2017 murder of his childhood friend Michael McGrath.
McGrath was last seen at his Halswell home in May 2017, and he was due to visit David Benbow the next day.
Benbow claimed his friend never turned up, but in October he was found guilty of murdering McGrath with a firearm.
Michael McGrath Photo: NZ Police
It was the second trial for Benbow on the charges.
In February 2023 a jury heard seven weeks of evidence, but after three days of deliberation they could not reach a verdict.
A second trial started in August, six years after McGrath went missing, and four years after Benbow's arrest.
The prosecution said that Benbow - a former prison guard - killed McGrath after learning that he was in a relationship with Benbow's ex-partner of 17-years.
Crown prosecutor Claire Boshier told the Christchurch High Court during the trial that Benbow spoke of "wanting to annihilate" McGrath after discovering the relationship.
Boshier told the jury that after McGrath's disappearance Benbow had said - 'I don't give a f*** what happened to him, it just teaches you not to introduce your partner to another man'."
The Crown said Benbow disposed of McGrath's body in a way that meant it had never been found.
Following the guilty verdict, McGrath's brother Simon said he felt like a cloud had been lifted, and that he been nervous going into the second trial.
He also had a plea for Benbow, saying they still wanted to know where his brother's body was.