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Home / New Zealand

'Horribly unfortunate choice of words,' Gable Tostee on his threat to Warriena Wright

By Belinda Feek
Reporter·NZ Herald·
18 Dec, 2018 11:15 PM4 mins to read

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Gable Tostee says threatening to throw Warriena Wright off his balcony the night she died was simply a poor choice of words, in a revealing new podcast. Photo / Nine Entertainment

Gable Tostee says threatening to throw Warriena Wright off his balcony the night she died was simply a poor choice of words, in a revealing new podcast. Photo / Nine Entertainment

Gable Tostee has spoken out about the night Kiwi woman Warriena Wright fell to her death from his Gold Coast balcony in a new podcast.

The Nine Network has just released a new segment to its True Crime Series with their upfront chat with Tostee.

He was charged with murder following Wright's death on August 9, 2014.

But after a trial in 2016 he was acquitted, and a recording on his iPhone would prove to be the crucial evidence that would clear his name.

The Nine Network has just released a new segment to its True Crime Series with their upfront chat with Tostee.

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A picture is painted of how they Tinder-swiped each other and arranged to meet each other at a beer garden before deciding to grab a six pack of beers and head back to his apartment.

The beers are finished, then Tostee's homemade vodka is cracked open.

But close to 1am, Tostee feels the need to press record on his phone and he's questioned why.

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He says why not, it was something he often he did as he regularly lost parts of his memory while out drinking.

They also talk about the number of women he'd slept with - 180.

"I like meeting girls," he replies, clarifying that revealing that figure at the time wasn't meant to be a boast.

"You don't expect that sort of thing to be plastered all over the news."

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When asked if it wasn't true, Tostee declined to comment but said it wasn't unusual for guys to sleep with different girls each weekend.

"The point I was making was that I went out pretty regularly.

"I know there's a lot of guys out there, it's not uncommon for guys who go out regularly to pick up and ... it was fun, I was just having fun each weekend."

But the morning of August 9 turned into anything but fun. After a night of drinking his homemade vodka, the arguing and fighting began, parts of the audio he recorded are played out.

The podcast starts with him calling his dad saying, "Um, I might have a bit of a situation".

"I met up with a girl for a date tonight, it was alright at first and we had sex in bed and after that she kept drinking. I think she thought it was a joke or something but she kept beating me up or whatever.

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Gable Tostee poses with Warriena Wright on the night she died in August 2014. Photo / Nine Entertainment
Gable Tostee poses with Warriena Wright on the night she died in August 2014. Photo / Nine Entertainment

"I forced her out on the balcony and I think she might have jumped off.

"I've been walking around, there's a million cops around my building. I'm f*****. I don't know what to do."

Weeks later he's charged, but he never publically speaks.

Speaking with 60 Minutes reporter Liam Bartlett, Tostee admitted to being relieved at the not guilty verdict.

"Absolutely. They took their time but you know at the end of the day they made the right decision.

"It doesn't matter how innocent a person is there's no comfort in being on trial for murder."

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Tostee talks about making the recording and his lawyer is also interviewed labelling it "an important piece of evidence and always very thankful to have had it".

"Without it, it would have been a very different trial."

Bartlett and Tostee listen to his recording, with Tostee calling her "quirky", and how he'd offered to walk her back home but she wanted to stay.

By 1.35am and "clearly inebriated" Wright becomes enraged, Bartlett says, as she can be heard hitting him and throwing things at him.

"I didn't know what else to do, i wanted it to stop," Tostee says.

Shortly afterwards, he's heard saying "that's enough".

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Overcome by anger, he threatens her with words that police will eventually use against him.

"See I thought you were kidding, and I've taken enough," he's heard telling Wright as she breathes heavily.

"This is f****** bullshit, you're lucky I haven't chucked you off my balcony you goddam psycho little bitch."

He described his outburst as "just a horribly, horribly unfortunate choice of words without any idea of what would happen next.

"I didn't intend that as a threat, I intended it as a figure of speech to say you're lucky I've been so tolerant with you."

The podcast is out now.

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