Jury finds homeless woman guilty of murdering 'best mate'
Rachael Eddy has been found guilty of murdering her “best mate”, Ross Kennedy, in Tauranga’s Gate Pā Reserve.
The jury returned its verdict in the High Court at Rotorua today after a short deliberation.
The 51-year-old homeless woman was convicted and remanded in custody for sentencing on December 15.
Eddy has been on trial since August 31 before Justice Kiri Tahana.
The Crown alleged Eddy murdered Kennedy, 63, who was also homeless, after an argument about money.
The Crown’s case was that Eddy murdered Kennedy by asphyxiation, either by strangling him or sitting on him in the early hours of October 4, 2024.
The trial previously heard the pair smoked meth and lost money playing the pokies the night before Kennedy died.
Eddy told a formal police interview she became angry at Kennedy when she found him masturbating in her tent in the reserve.
She said after he made a sexual comment, she sat on him from the outside of her tent until she realised he had stopped moving. She previously told others she had strangled him.
Kennedy’s body was discovered on October 6 after someone Eddy confessed to went to police.
Defence lawyer Bill Nabney said in his closing address to the jury yesterday that Kennedy was Eddy’s “best mate” and she did not intend to kill him.
He urged the jury to acquit her because she was defending herself against a perceived threat with no “murderous intent”.
Megan Wilson is a health and general news reporter for the Bay of Plenty Times and the Rotorua Daily Post. She has been a journalist since 2021.
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