R v Wiggins (No 6) [2022] NSWSC 1189

Supreme Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: R v Wiggins (No 6) [2022] NSWSC 1189 Hearing dates: 29 August 2022 Date of orders: 30 August 2022 Decision date: 05 September 2022 Jurisdiction: Common Law Before: N Adams J Decision: For orders see [53] Catchwords: EVIDENCE – recordings of accused speaking on telephone captured by police listening device – discussion of disappearance of Goran Nikolovski and police investigation – objection under Evidence Act s 137 – relevance to accused's motive – where accused speaks about police in derogatory terms – whether jury would suspect accused's involvement in criminal activity – danger of unfair prejudice Legislation Cited: Criminal Procedure Act 1986 (NSW), s 130A Evidence Act 1995 (NSW), s 137 Cases Cited: Colby v The Queen [1999] NSWCCA 261 Papakosmas v The Queen (1999) 196 CLR 297; [1999] HCA 37 The Queen v Bauer (a pseudonym) (2018) 266 CLR 56]; [2018] HCA 40 Category: Procedural rulings Parties: Regina (Crown) Matthew Paul Wiggins (Accused) Representation: Counsel: K McKay SC with S Sloane (Crown) D Dalton SC with T Woods (Accused)

Solicitors: Solicitor for Public Prosecutions (NSW) Khan Law & Associates File Number(s): 2013/13092

Judgment

Background 1. Matthew Wiggins is on trial for the murder of Darko Janceski on 14 April 2022 and the serious assault of his father Slobodan Janceski the same day. 2. On 29 August 2022, the fourteenth day of the trial, objection was made to four out of a total of 31 listening device transcripts and 17 SMS messages the Crown proposes to tender. It was conceded on behalf of the accused that the four intercept calls were relevant. The sole basis of the objection was that they should be excluded under s 137 of the Evidence Act 1995 (NSW). 3. Submissions were made late on 29 August 2022 and one of the calls over which objection was made was played in court during that time. The Crown tendered the proposed folder of the additional intercepts to be played (over which no objection is made) along with the accompanying agreed facts. I reserved my decision overnight and at 10am on 30 August 2022 I indicated my rulings with reasons to follow. These are my reasons for those rulings.