RSA ready to get on with life

By SCOTT MacLeod

As police led William Bell through the scene of his triple murder, Rod Blake could do nothing but stand and watch.

It was October 30, and the Mt Wellington-Panmure RSA secretary was the only employee in the building as Bell, jurors, lawyers, police and Justice Judith Potter filed past as part of a High Court trial.

Mr Blake, aged 78, shook visibly yesterday as he spoke of seeing Bell and his trademark smirk.

"I was the only one here," Mr Blake recalled. "The judge said, 'You must be hating this', and I said, 'Just give me five minutes with him'."

According to Mr Blake, Crown Solicitor Simon Moore came over and said, "Your stomach must be turning over".

In some ways, the RSA club has grown stronger.

Mr Blake said outings were being organised and barbecues for the David Tua fights and Warriors games. Members of one RSA in the South Island had visited three times.

Bar managers Willie Tau and Lorraine Sammut, both 50, worked with Bell at the RSA for more than two weeks before the killer was told to "piss off and not come back".

It was the catalyst for murder.

At first, Bell had seemed fine on the job. But gradually his lies and tall stories were exposed.

Bell told staff he was learning how to be a manager because he had been offered a job running a pub for cousin and rugby league legend Dean Bell.

Mrs Sammut said Bell started getting cockier in the days before his sacking.

"He exaggerated, lied a lot. He started getting on customers' nerves as well. But to look at him, you wouldn't think he was capable of what he did."

The RSA was scattered with mostly elderly people when the Herald visited yesterday. Everyone was happy that Bell, 24, was found guilty of murder.

On Wednesday night, many of these people had sat in the RSA watching televisions tuned to the two main news channels.

But the RSA was almost empty when the jury returned after more than nine hours of deliberation.

But for Mr Tau, the hardest part was earlier, when he came back to work and had to deal with events he knew had taken place around him.

"I think a lot of people here are very relieved the trial is over and everything is getting back to normal," he said yesterday.

"We just have to get on with life."