Brian David MacFarlane stands trial in Port Augusta charged with murder
A historical feud between two former co-workers involving alleged opal mining and death threats ended fatally in a remote town in the state’s Far North, a court has heard.
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A confrontation between two former co-workers involving alleged unlicensed opal mining in a remote SA town has seen a miner allegedly stabbed to death, a court has heard.
Brian David MacFarlane, 62, is on trial this week in the Port Augusta Supreme Court charged with the murder of a man he knew for over 25 years, Paul Tanzer, in Andamooka in 2019.
Mr MacFarlane is accused of murdering Mr Tanzer, an Andamooka resident, following alleged historical bad blood between the two and a confrontation involving alleged unlicensed opal mining in the backyard of a friend of MacFarlane’s.
The court heard Mr MacFarlane elected to ignore his lawyer’s advice and speak to SAPOL detectives while in custody at Roxby Downs Police Station following the incident.
“He beat the f**k out of me there,” Mr MacFarlane said, referring to a hand-drawn map he’d provided to SAPOL while giving a statement following his arrest.
“Murder is when you try and kill someone, not when some idiot jumps on top of you and beats the crap out of you.”
The court heard Mr MacFarlane and Mr Tanzer had known each other for several decades and had previously worked together.
In the Roxby Downs interview footage played to the court, Mr MacFarlane alleges that prior to his death, Mr Tanzer had been digging in a woman’s backyard looking for opals while she was on holiday.
“As well as mining her yard out, he’s (Paul Tanzer) said that he’s got a development permit, but it expired ten years ago,” he said.
During Mr MacFarlane’s taped conversation with police, he said he was acting in self defence and had previously received death threats from Mr Tanzer, the court heard.
Mr MacFarlane had bandages on either side of his face and had his wrist in a cast after being arrested at Roxby Downs Hospital at 5.50pm on November 8, 2019.
Andamooka is a small remote mining town about 20 minutes drive east from Roxby Downs.
The court heard the alleged murder weapon was a single-bladed pocket knife, with Mr Tanzer stabbed twice in the arm and leg, the latter stab wound proving fatal after severing an artery.
Forensic samples taken from the knife indicated a “very likely” presence of DNA from Mr Tanzer and Mr MacFarlane was present on the weapon.
Items seized from the alleged crime scene, a property in Andamooka, include a bloodstained tarp, star-dropper and a blood-splattered ute-tray.
Medical professionals and former SAPOL crime scene professionals were also interviewed by the prosecution in their submissions to the jury.
Mr Tanzer’s cause of death was identified as cardiovascular collapse from major arterial damage caused by the stab wounds.
Mr MacFarlane’s trial will continue in Port Augusta Magistrate Court next week.
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