Killed over missing tobacco: Jury finds Hastings man guilty of manslaughter

Police at the scene in Lumsden Rd, Akina, on February 8 last year. Photo / File

A man has been remanded in custody for sentencing after being found guilty of manslaughter in the death of a younger man friend and near-neighbour in Hastings almost 14 months ago.

The verdict against 44-year-old Vaughan Robert Davies came after the jury of seven men and five women found him not guilty of murdering father-of-six Bruce Tracey Wirihana-Hawkins, who was 30 when he died after being stabbed on February 8 last year.

The jury deliberated for over four hours, retiring just after 3pm on Thursday, resuming at 9am today and delivering the verdicts about 11.30am, before Justice Christine Grice, with members of both families in the public gallery.

There were some tears, one person in the gallery calling Davies a "murderer", but there was generally a dignified response.

Davies was remanded in custody for sentencing on April 30.

Davies admitted he stabbed Wirihana-Hawkins and the single 13cm wound hitting the heart caused the death, but he pleaded not guilty to the charge of murder when the trial opened on Monday, with defence counsel Eric Forster arguing it was self-defence and Davies did not intend to kill the man.

Both the deceased and accused lived as near-neighbours in Lumsden Rd, Akina, and the incident happened at the deceased's home, in a dispute over Davies' son's missing $100 pouch of Port Royal tobacco.

Crown prosecutor Jo Reilly called 13 witnesses, which included police producing two recorded interviews with the accused, who also gave evidence in court on Wednesday.

The incident followed some time at a central Hastings bar, an intoxicated walk home and the smoking of methamphetamine with Wirihana-Hawkins' partner and another man, all known to each other.

Davies said Wirihana-Hawkins seemed agitated that the group had been away some time when they had originally headed into town only to get takeaway alcohol.

He said that after asking for the "smokes" to be given back, Wirihana-Hawkins approached him aggressively and began pushing him in the chest.

He said he stumbled back and pulled a knife from his pocket fearing he was about to get "a hiding" and intending only to scare the man.

It was then the stabbing happened, Forster saying in his closing address on Thursday that the position of the single wound was some evidence that the blow was not intended to kill.

The main questions for the jury were whether it was self-defence and was the level of force justified in the circumstances.