Christchurch, Angela Blackmoore murder cold case: Killer told friend he was ‘high as a kite on MDMA’ during confession

A man who confessed to murdering Angela Blackmoore told a friend a day after his admission he was “high as a kite on MDMA” when he spoke to police.

Former debt collector David Hawken, 50, and Rebecca Wright-Meldrum, 51, are on trial in the High Court at Christchurch after denying murdering Angela Blackmoore on August 17, 1995.

A third person, Jeremy Powell, earlier admitted murdering Blackmoore and alleged he carried out the killing on instruction by Hawken after he allegedly offered $10,000 for the killing to help free up a property deal. He said that Wright-Meldrum accompanied him to Blackmoore’s home and that she used her friendship with her to gain entry into the house.

On Monday, the jury heard a phone call between Powell and one of his friends from Christchurch Men’s Prison, a day after he made his statement.

In the call, produced by the defence for Wright-Meldrum, Powell’s friend asked him what he told the police.

“I don’t actually know. I was high as a kite on MDMA,” he said.

“Apparently I confessed...”

Angela Blackmoore was stabbed to death in her Christchurch home in 1995.

His lawyer had told him his statement may not hold up in court.

“I don’t know whether to laugh or cry,” the friend replied.

In cross-examination, Detective Sergeant Deborah Mason confirmed the call was made less than 24 hours after he made his statement to police.

A urine sample was taken later that day which showed he had mephedrone in his system, which Wright-Meldrum’s lawyer said had “similar effects to MDMA”.

The jury earlier heard a series of intercepted phone calls between Hawken and several people.

In one call between Hawken and his partner, he said they had made an arrest in the Blackmoore case.

“I’m off the hit list then, well hopefully am anyway,” he said.

“No more cloud over my f****** head.”

David Peter Hawken (left) and Rebecca Elizabeth Jane Wright-Meldrum (right) are charged with murdering Angela Blackmoore on August 17, 1995.

He said he did not trust the police and how they had handled the case over the years.

“I can’t see how they’ll come looking for me again...”

He then calls some relatives and tells them about the arrests.

“I’m just waiting for the onslaught cos f****** no doubt they’re gonna come back and talk to everybody again.”

He was looking forward to finding out who the two people were who had been arrested.

“Something tells me I’m gonna have to go through the f****** roller mill again with them because, yeah…”

He added he was “over the moon” that people had been arrested.

He also speaks to some of his associates about some issues with his bowels that may require surgery.

He told his aunt he was lucky to be alive.

“They’d tried to god [to] kill me three times when I left the f****** underworld... I’ve got quite a f****** story to tell in life.”

In a call with an associate, Hawken said he was going to be speaking to police about Blackmoore’s murder.

“There is no way I would have been involved in it.”

He told his associate he was not discounting police “having another crack”.

David Peter Hawken was working as a debt collector associated with the Templars Motorcycle Club. Photo / George Heard

“Hopefully I can just stay just invisible.”

In another call with his aunt, he said police were probably listening to their conversation.

“I think they’re gonna f****** try and stitch me up again these guys. They got f*** all.”

“I’m not worried about it.”

He said he had “watched so many people go to jail that are innocent”.

“And I’ve seen a lot of people who are guilty walk away.”

He told her he was “totally innocent”.

“I’ve actually got nothing to hide.”

In cross-examination by Hawken’s lawyer, Anne Stevens KC, Mason confirmed a report done about the intercepted communications said nothing evidential was obtained during the period of the search warrant that involved more than 1000 interceptions.

At no point did Hawken mention Powell or Wright-Meldrum, Mason confirmed.

Stevens earlier told the jury in her opening remarks that Hawken did not have any involvement in Blackmoore’s murder.

“The defence case is that David Hawken had no motive to kill Angela Blackmoore and he had nothing to gain from killing her and he had no power to order the killing.

Powell murdered Blackmoore for his own satisfaction, Stevens argued, saying he “enjoys violence” and was depraved.

Wright-Meldrum’s lawyer Stephanie Grieve KC asked the jury to keep an open mind until they had heard all of the evidence.

“Focus on whether the Crown has proven beyond reasonable doubt that Mr Powell is telling the truth and that she was there with him. Is his innocence credible and reliable or is he lying about her involvement?”

The trial continues.

Sam Sherwood is a Christchurch-based reporter who covers crime. He is a senior journalist who joined the Herald in 2022, and has worked as a journalist for 10 years.