Talon Dean pleads guilty to the murder of Zachery Davies-Scott at Heddon Greta home in 2022
A second man has pleaded guilty to the violent shooting death of Zachery “Donnie” Davies-Scott in what was thought to be a botched home invasion in the Hunter Valley. Read what happened in court.
Newcastle
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A second man has pleaded guilty to the violent shooting death of Zachery “Donnie” Davies-Scott in what was thought to be a botched home invasion in the Hunter Valley.
Talon Dean, 26, fronted Newcastle Local Court via video link on Wednesday and admitted to the murder of the 25-year-old just two days after Christmas in 2022.
He was gunned down in front of his family after a group of four men allegedly forced their way into his Heddon Greta home.
Dean’s plea has come two weeks after Gino Ricardo Delpiero was the first to plead guilty to killing Mr Davies-Scott.
The court previously heard he didn’t intend to kill him but admitted his involvement as part of a joint criminal enterprise.
The facts in the case are still disputed and there will be a hearing in the NSW Supreme Court, with Dean to be committed for sentence on September 5.
Following the 25-year-old’s death, Strike Force Roslyn was established and investigations led them to the arrest of two men in 2023, a third man in 2024 and another man in May this year.
A woman was also arrested and charged with hindering a police investigation and has since been convicted.
The remaining co-accused – Jarryd Nickersen and Matthew Robert Houghton – are also charged with Mr Davies-Scott’s murder.
They are yet to enter pleas and remain before the courts.
Police allege the group of men targeted the young man in what was first believed to be a robbery but later revealed to be over drugs.
His 52-year-old mother was also injured trying to fight off the alleged offenders, in what police say was a terrifying ordeal for the family.
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