The fiancee of an Australian man murdered in front of her says "no punishment will balance out" the wrongdoing.
Mark Ronald Garson was due to go on trial next month for the murder of Sean McKinnon and threatening to kill his partner Bianca Buckley after attacking them in their campervan that was parked atop a Raglan cliff during the early hours of August 16 last year.
Buckley was able to escape and ran several kilometres to find help.
At a hearing in the High Court at Hamilton this afternoon he entered guilty pleas to both charges.
Buckley told the Herald today that she didn't need to spell out the "magnitude of the impact that murdering my future husband before my eyes and then threatening to kill me has had on the life of myself and our loved ones.
"To be honest, I am tired of hearing about the murderer.
"No punishment he ever receives will balance out his wrongdoing. I'm just glad he has finally stopped wasting everyone's time by pleading guilty."
Garson was handed down a first strike warning for the murder charge, which is a qualifying violence offence, by Justice Jagose.
He also convicted him on both charges and remanded him in custody for sentencing in December.
Crown prosecutor Jacinda Hamilton also alerted the judge that the two-month delay in sentencing would be so McKinnon's siblings could make the trip to New Zealand.