Tactical media release issued to prompt alleged killer to visit body site

A “tactical” release was made by police to the media in the hope murder-accused David Benbow would visit the location where he might have buried the body of his mate Michael McGrath.

Benbow, 54, is on trial in the High Court in Christchurch for murdering his childhood friend McGrath, 49, on May 22, 2017. It’s alleged he shot McGrath after inviting him to his house at Candys Rd, Halswell, to help shift railway sleepers. Benbow’s rifle and McGrath’s body have never been found.

Benbow’s account of May 22, 2017, is that McGrath did not turn up to help him, and he never saw him again.

Detective Inspector Kylie Schaare told the court police had consulted with a homicide/body disposal expert Mark Harrison, who worked for the Australian federal police, in June 2017. Harrison had advised putting out a media release about police consulting with an international expert about the location of McGrath’s body in the hope it would prompt Benbow to check his disposal site.

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Police issued the release on August 3, 2017 and monitoring of Benbow’s phone and vehicle movements showed he knew about the expert and in the following days made trips to the Halswell River area.

She said further searching was done in the Halswell River area in July the following year but no forensic evidence was found.

In other evidence Stephen Robinson, a Lyttelton Port Company ship lines supervisor, told the court he was driving home from a night shift after helping tie up a fishing boat called the San Granit​ on May 22, 2017 at the oil bunker. The boat was secured at 8.31am. After going back to his office, he drove home and saw two men outside Benbow’s property in Candys Rd when he drove past about 9am. One looked like a picture he had seen of McGrath in the news.

The pair were standing on the grass verge outside Benbow’s address talking as he approached the junction of Sabys and Candys roads. A dark blue Subaru was parked on the opposite side of the road at an awkward angle, he said.

Although he was always certain he had seen the men on May 22, when he first spoke to police he wasn’t sure of the time. He then consulted his work log.

In cross-examination by defence counsel Marc Corlett, KC, Robinson said when he first spoke to police in June 2017 he could not remember the date or time of the sighting.

He told Corlett that in his initial statement in November 2017 he had said he saw the two men about 12.30pm and the sighting was either May 21 or 22.

He made a second statement after looking at the pilot boat’s log and said he completed a job on May 22 at Lyttelton about 9.30am and the sighting in Candys Rd was about 10am.

Corlett suggested to Robinson there was no way he could have been on Candys Rd about 9am on May 22, 2017, if he had secured the boat at 8.31am. Robinson agreed the drive from work to Candys Rd was about 25 to 30 minutes.

The trial continues.