"John" told the court he made contact with Barlow in Tauranga last October.
He arranged to meet Barlow at McDonald's carpark in Huntly.
Before they met John's car was wired for sound and video. Those recordings were played to the jury.
In Huntly, John asked what the problem was Barlow needed help with. "I said, 'you tell me what it is you want done and who you want it done to'." Barlow replied: "... I need them roughed up a bit, I need them to go. I want these people out of my life totally, gone."
John queried whether he wanted both of them killed.
"He confirmed they were his parents."
John asked for a $10,000 fee, with $2000 up front to cover expenses. Barlow claimed not to have $2000 available but agreed to talk with him in a week.
A distant relative of Barlow's, Daniel Ryder, a self-professed activist against Child Youth and Family, told the court he was stunned when Barlow asked him to kill his parents or organise someone to do so.
Ryder said when he first met up with Barlow he introduced himself as a security guard at CYF, saying he could access files for him.
At a later meeting Barlow said he knew an unsafe "safe" house in Invercargill where children should not be. Pressed, Barlow gave him the names of those running the house, Kevin and Noeleen Barlow, and that something needed to be done to organise their deaths, a fee of $150,000 was mentioned. It was also suggested he beat up a Mataura man.
"I was stunned," Mr Ryder said. When Barlow asked to meet him face to face Mr Ryder said he became scared and rang the police.
Challenged by Barlow's lawyer, Craig Tuck, that Barlow's request to have his parents killed was nonsense Mr Ryder insisted he was telling the truth.
"I am not a murderer, not a hit man," he said, for three days I stressed, I called the police, the police have done their job."
Evidence given by the accused's mother, Diana Barlow, centred around the crumbling relationship between Barlow, her, and his wheelchair-bound father.
