Accused sacks lawyers in case of bodies in a box

A man charged over the deaths of two people, whose bodies were stuffed inside a toolbox dumped in a dam, has sacked his lawyers.

Supporters of Tuhirangi-Thomas Tahiata leave the Supreme Court in Brisbane. Picture: AAP.

A man charged over the deaths of two people, whose bodies were found stuffed inside a toolbox dumped in a dam, has sacked his lawyers and attempted to represent himself on the first day of his murder trial.

Tuhirangi-Thomas Tahiata yesterday told Brisbane’s ­Supreme Court that he no longer trusted the legal aid system and the representation of his solicitors and barrister.

“Due to my recent experience, I’ve lost faith in the legal system and I do not wish to be represented by lawyers who are determined that I should plead guilty,” he said.

Mr Tahiata is one of eight people charged over the murders of Cory Breton and Iuliana Triscaru in February 2016.

A dispute over drug debts ­allegedly led the group to bash the pair in a unit at Kingston, south of Brisbane, before tying them up and forcing them into the 2m-long toolbox.

They were then allegedly driven to a semi-rural dam and shot in the head before the box was thrown into the water.

Mr Tahiata has been represented by two sets of solicitors since he was charged, one funded by legal aid.

On the advice of his family, who were present in court, Mr Tahiata sought to represent himself during the trial, assisted by a “McKenzie friend” — an ­adviser who can sit with a ­defendant at the bar table and quietly offer ­advice but cannot directly address the judge or jury.

Mr Tahiata asked for New Zealand-based professional ­McKenzie friend Kristen Westwood, who has a law degree but is not a practising solicitor or barrister, to be given permission to support him at the bar table.

Judge Helen Bowskill said she was “very concerned” that if Mr Tahiata did not have ­adequate representation it could lead to a mistrial or give grounds for an ­appeal.

“For you to proceed without representation in such a serious matter as this one poses very ­serious challenges,” she said.

Justice Bowskill urged him to reconsider and adjourned the trial for a review on July 17.

The trial was set to last for two weeks but that timeline was based on the assumption that, as agreed by Mr Tahiata’s previous lawyers, certain evidence would be taken as accepted and would not need to be proved by the crown.

The new timeframe for the trial was likely to be four weeks, the court heard.