Witness: Murder accused feared gay boss

A farmhand accused of murdering his gay employer felt like his boss had been "hitting on him", the Kaikohe District Court heard.
A depositions hearing for Craig Ross, 30, a Kaikohe farmhand, was held in the court yesterday before two Justices of the Peace.
Ross is charged with the murder of 53-year-old farmer Robert Green on or about August 12, 2004. Ross has not entered a plea to the murder charge laid after Mr Green's body was found at his Te Pua Rd home near Kaikohe.
Yesterday, the JPs found there was a prima facie case to answer and Ross will go to trial.
Ross was remanded in custody until a High Court callover in Whangarei on February 10, 2005.
Farm worker Dion Hokai gave evidence that Ross felt as if Bob (Robert Green) was "hitting on him" and it had made him feel "a bit frustrated".
Ross worked for Mr Green.
Mr Hokai said Ross knew the code to the alarm at Mr Green's house and he thought Ross could have had a key to his house.
He said Mr Green and Ross had not turned up to work on August 13 which was unusual, so he (Mr Hokai) had gone up to Mr Green's place.
Mr Hokai said he recognised a pile of clothes on the ground outside of Mr Green's house that Ross had been wearing the day before.
Under cross-examination, Mr Hokai told Ross' defence lawyer Michael Dodds that Ross had talked about leaving his job.
"Craig had mentioned that he was going to resign," Mr Hokai said.
Mr Hokai said he was not sure if Ross had mentioned leaving to Mr Green.
Farmhand Victoria Chant told the court it had been "common knowledge that Bob (Mr Green) was gay".
Miss Chant said it had been a talking point in Kaikohe when Ross had taken his two children to Australia with Mr Green earlier in the year.
Miss Chant told Crown prosecutor Peter Magee she had known Ross for the majority of her life and he owned a shotgun and .22 rifle.
She had seen Ross between 4pm and 5pm on August 12 while she was milking.
Under cross-examination by Mr Dodds, Miss Chant said she had not seen Ross after he had left the milking shed.
Timothy Makoare, who rented a cottage in front of Mr Green's house, told Mr Magee he had heard a car go up Mr Green's driveway just before 8pm on August 12.
Mr Makoare said the car was only at Mr Green's house for one or two minutes. He could not say which way the vehicle had gone when it left Mr Green's.
A raft of charges were laid after Ross was arrested in August.
They included possession of a firearm in the commission of a crime, abduction of a woman and six charges of raping a woman. Ross has admitted these charges.