A 25-year-old man and the father-of-four he is accused of murdering got into a fight after both had been drinking, the defendant's lawyer said today.
Olo Fiti, 37, was repeatedly stabbed with a knife outside a friend's home in Preston Rd in the South Auckland suburb of Otara on Friday night.
In Manukau District Court today the accused man, who has interim name suppression, was remanded in custody until May 13 for a date to be set for a pre-depositions hearing.
He was arrested at Auckland International Airport as he was about to board a flight to Samoa, 24 hours after the slaying.
Joe Pisa, a close friend of Mr Fiti, shouted obscenities at the defendant from the public gallery.
"Olo was like a brother to me. He was a really close friend and we grew up in the same town," he later told NZPA outside the court.
"His family are devastated, that's why I got so angry when I saw this guy in court today."
Outside court, defence lawyer Panama Le'au'anae said he requested interim name suppression for 24 hours so a close relative of the accused man could be told of the charges.
"My client and the deceased had both been drinking. There was some confrontation and some fighting, but it's too early to say to what extent.
"My client is very emotional about things. He's very distraught about what's happened.
"I wasn't expecting the outburst in court today, but given the charge he's facing, it's probably understandable.
"There may be members of the deceased's family who are extremely upset and I can understand that.
"It's early days to say if I'll be defending the charge, but a person's life has been taken, and my client's been reflective on his actions. He has no previous convictions."
Mr Le'au'anae said he thought there was some acquaintance between his client and Mr Fiti, but he did not think they were good friends.
"My client was able to give me some instructions about what happened and the circumstances behind it, but I can't say any more about it at this stage," he said.
The lawyer said his client had been in New Zealand for about three years. He's living with his partner and he had relatives in New Zealand.
