Patched gang members accused of armed robbery in Christchurch garage

The man, who was giving evidence in the Christchurch District Court, said he told the gang members they were talking to the wrong person but they allegedly searched him before sitting him back down again. Photo / NZME

A man says he was sitting in his garage watching television when he was approached by two patched gang members asking where “the money” and the “gold” were.

The man, who was giving evidence in the Christchurch District Court, said he told the gang members they were talking to the wrong person but they allegedly searched him before sitting him back down again.

Soon after his flatmate was allegedly pulled into the garage and a gun was pointed at them both.

“I felt the gun in the back of my head, I think about it every night.”

The Crown says the two patched gang members were Enzed Beazley and Khan Mcfarlane, both of whom are facing charges of aggravated robbery after the flatmates were robbed of $1200 in cash, cigarettes and an Xbox controller.

Beazley said he was there but it was to confront one of the flatmates who he claims was selling drugs in the neighbourhood. Mcfarlane denies any involvement.

Crown prosecutor Patrick Brand told the jury the alleged incident happened in October 2023 at an Aranui property where the two flatmates lived.

One of the flatmates gave evidence that he had got home around 2.30pm after dropping his partner at work to find a patched Black Power member sitting on the deck, wearing a black hoodie, black pants, black hat, with a balaclava covering the majority of his face. He could see a tā moko on the person’s face, on top of the nose.

Then he saw Beazley, a man he knew “through the neighbourhood for many years, a pretty known person around Aranui”.

The man said Beazley told him he wanted to have a chat and pulled him into the garage.

“He pulled me into the garage by my T-shirt, he was in the doorway of the garage, I was in shock.”

He said Beazley asked for, then demanded, money.

“My flatmate got instantly hostile and pulled a machete out.”

He testified that Mcfarlane then came into the garage and brandished a gun, which was not a standard pistol but a single shot with no clip and no chamber. He said he then told his flatmate to put the machete down.

Beazley then allegedly took the cash out of the man’s wallet as the gun was raised to his head.

He said Mcfarlane hit him in the mouth, enough to break a tooth, while Beazley tried to wrestle a ring off his finger, as he resisted.

He said the pair then ran out of the garage after they couldn’t remove the ring.

The trial is being heard in the Christchurch District Court. Photo / File

The second flatmate: The gun was pushed to the back of my head

The second flatmate, who also gave evidence, said he had been watching television when the two patched gang members came in asking where the money and the gold were.

He said he told them they were talking to the wrong person before they searched him and sat him on the couch.

“One of them was swiping stuff, they said, ‘you know what we are here for’, I said, ‘what? I don’t know you, what are you here for?’”

The man said the initial interactions went on for about five minutes before his flatmate was pulled into the garage.

He said he picked up a black bat and a machete before Mcfarlane came into the garage and brandished a gun.

The man said he told his flatmate to listen and not do anything and that was when Beazley allegedly tried to go for the wallet and ring before the gun was pointed at the back of the man’s head.

“The barrel was pushed to the back of my head, it is not a very nice feeling when it is behind your head. He cracked it before he pointed it at my head.”

The gun was also pointed at his flatmate.

Defence: The story’s fabricated

Beazley’s lawyer April Kelland told the jury the story was fabricated. While Beazley was there that day and at that time it was because he had gone to the property by himself to confront one of the flatmates and to stop him from selling drugs in the neighbourhood.

The first flatmate, who had arrived home while the gang members were there, said that was not the case.

He said there were no drugs on the property and he did not take drugs or sell them.

Kelland asked the second flatmate, who was in the garage, if the pair were wealthy people.

“No, my flatmate goes out metal detecting,” he replied.

Kelland said it would be unusual for someone to come into the garage and ask where the gold is.

Instead, Kelland said Beazley had come to talk to them about dealing cannabis and evidence would be given that the pair were selling cannabis to adults and minors.

“Mr Beazley was squaring up to you.”

Kelland said the flatmate gave a container of cannabis to Beazley.

Should we call the police?

The court heard the two flatmates had argued over whether to report the incident to police.

One said he did not want it reported because gang members were involved, while the other said he had lost money.

A 111 call ended up being made about 90 minutes after the alleged robbery and that audio was played to the jury.

“We had an argument about not calling cops, not an argument, but a disagreement, I was of the view that it should and shouldn’t be reported, I’m thinking about the backlash,” one of the flatmates testified.

The trial is being heard by a jury of seven women and five men before Judge Tom Gilbert and is set down for four days.