Murder-accused said he'd messed up, court told

3:37 pm on 13 July 2016

A teenager accused of murdering a promising young rugby league player said he'd "caked it", meaning he'd messed up, moments after a fatal stabbing in Grey Lynn, a witness says.

Dominic Bellfield gave evidence today in the High Court in Auckland, where Vincent Angene Skeen is on trial over the death of Luke Tipene, who was 16.

Luke Tipene

Luke Tipene Photo: FACEBOOK

Mr Bellfield told the court he had been hanging out with Mr Skeen and other friends before they drove to a Halloween party.

The party was breaking up as they arrived and a fight broke out on the street, he said.

He saw Mr Skeen drop to the ground and, a short time later, everyone started running.

He ran back to his car, where Mr Skeen's girlfriend was waiting, he said.

As he did a u-turn, Mr Skeen jumped into the car.

When asked what happened, Mr Skeen would not say but later said he had "caked it" - slang for making a mistake, Mr Bellfield said.

The Crown said the exchange came just moments after Mr Skeen, now aged 18, stabbed Mr Tipene in the neck with a broken beer bottle.

The trial started on Monday, and was expected to continue for two weeks.

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