Crown describes fatal wound in American student bus stop attack

Crown lawyer Henry Steele has closed the prosecution's case in the trial of four teenagers accused of the murder and aggravated robbery of 33-year-old American PhD student Kyle Whorrall. Whorrall died in hospital after being left with a 'catastrophic and ultimately fatal wound' to the top of his head following an attack at a Meadowbank bus stop in April 2025.

The Crown alleges the group was driving on St Johns Road and planned to rob Whorrall after seeing him carrying two tote bags of groceries. Steele told the jury that two people exited the vehicle, stating, 'Two figures, one armed with a machete, both with a singular purpose, to rob'.

The prosecution argues that using the machete was a foreseeable consequence of the group's shared plan to commit robbery. Steele told jurors, 'We know there's a machete in the car and nobody is harvesting bananas'. The Crown does not need to prove which individual struck the fatal blow, only that those in the car knew such an event could occur.

Four defendants have pleaded not guilty, while a fifth teenager has previously pleaded guilty to both murder and aggravated robbery. Defence counsel previously noted that the Crown has been unable to definitively identify who delivered the killing blow 18 months after the incident.

Compiled from reports by Otago Daily Times, RNZ and NZ Herald.