KEY POINTS:
A loud thud was followed by the sound of tyres screeching when hit-and-run victim Joanne Wang was struck by a car, a court heard yesterday.
Student Natahl Vaughn told a depositions hearing she heard a "loud thud" as Mrs Wang fell to the ground and then a sound like "tyres gaining traction" as a car accelerated away.
Mrs Wang, 39, was struck by a car in the Westfield Manukau carpark on June 16 last year. She had been trying to retrieve her handbag that contained $4000 that had been allegedly snatched from her by the driver of the car.
Police allege Christopher Jacob Junior Shadrock, 22, was the driver and he is charged with murdering her and stealing her handbag. A depositions hearing began on Monday at the Manukau District Court.
When asked what she thought the loud thud had been Ms Vaughn said she thought it was the sound of the back of Mrs Wang's head hitting the ground.
"She moved along the side of the bonnet and came down the front left-hand side," she said.
Ms Vaughn was the first person to reach Mrs Wang and found her to be "unresponsive" and that "blood was coming from her mouth".
Six other men are charged in relation to Mrs Wang's death. Vila Lemanu, 24, Lionel Manaaki Tekanawa, 22, Mateni Lynch, 19, and Terence Tere, 22, allegedly moved the car and set it alight.
Maka Tuikolovatu, 20, and Dalton Harris, 22, are charged with the theft of Mrs Wang's handbag. Tuikolovatu is also accused of concealing the bag.
The depositions hearing is expected to finish tomorrow.
