Alleged pub murderer waits in Maryborough
A MAN accused of a murder in Maryborough will remain in custody until at least February.
Simeon Frederick Blair appeared in Maryborough Magistrates Court yesterday accused of the murder of Cleveland Clay at the Carlton Hotel on April 27.
Two witnesses testified they were with Mr Blair and Mr Clay immediately before Mr Clay's death.
Another witness, Kiah Webster, testified he heard the sounds of Mr Clay allegedly being thrown off the landing at the hotel.
Mr Webster said he was staying at the hotel on April 27 when he met Mr Clay.
"He was just having a good time, laughing... joking," Mr Webster said.
Mr Clay then went out with two of Mr Webster's friends - Jarrad Bush and Blade Paku - while Mr Webster stayed in his room.
Mr Bush and Mr Paku testified that it was on their way back to the hotel from Rick's Pies that they encountered Mr Blair, who had been in a relationship with a relative of Mr Clay's.
They said they went back to the hotel, where some form of altercation between Mr Blair, Mr Bush and Mr Clay is alleged to have occurred.
Mr Clay fell from the landing, and it is alleged Mr Blair then went downstairs and bashed him to death.
Mr Webster said he could hear Mr Blair from his room saying "let's throw this c**t off the balcony" and then later heard "someone getting hit with a piece of wood or something... there was a loud crack".
Mr Bush and Mr Paku both admitted their memories of the night were poor.
Mr Paku said he drank a large quantity of cask wine that day, while Mr Bush said he had drunk about 20 to 30 pots of VB, as well as smoking cannabis with Mr Paku and Mr Webster.
Neither Mr Paku nor Mr Bush have been charged over the incident.
Police prosecutor Senior Constable Jeanette Grigoris presented 86 witness statements and 57 exhibits, including crime scene photographs and CCTV footage from various locations around Maryborough.
The committal hearing is set to resume on February 28.
