The 38cm arrow lodged in the abdomen of the 54-year-old victim following the incident on April 23 this year but, miraculously, did not penetrate any major organs and he was discharged from hospital the same day.
Shaun Michael Hartstone, 25, appeared before the High Court at Dunedin this morning where he pleaded guilty to wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, resisting police and threatening to kill.
A charge of attempted murder was dropped but the court heard how when the defendant was interviewed by police after the incident, he said the victim “deserved to go in the ground, be six foot under”.
The acrimony began on April 9 when Hartstone discovered his Honda trail bike, which had been stored in the Concord garage of the victim, had been stolen.
Believing the victim and another man were responsible, the defendant turned up to the address a few days later and began shooting fireworks at the garage.
In the early hours of April 23, Hartstone returned to property, again yelling abuse at the man.
The court heard the victim later found a window of his van was smashed and there were two broken arrows inside.
He was not aware the episode was to be a precursor to something far more serious just 19 hours later.
With him, he had a “Siege 300” compound crossbow capable of firing an arrow at 90 metres (300 feet) per second - a weapon he had previously used for hunting.
When the victim heard Hartstone arrive, he armed himself with an axe and emerged from the garage with an associate.
He told police he was 2m from the ute when he heard the defendant say: “You f...... deserve it, you f...... c....”, before there was a sound “like the pinging of a rope”.
The “bullet-point arrow” hit the victim in the torso and Hartstone sped away.
Doctors discovered though it was deep inside the man’s abdomen it was embedded in fatty tissue and, after its removal, he was discharged that afternoon.
Hartstone, meanwhile, had fled to Oamaru with his partner and police found him after executing a search warrant on April 25.
After being placed under arrest, the court heard the defendant thrashed around and was taken to the ground by two officers so he could be handcuffed.
Hartstone became “even more aggressive” and told one sergeant: “When I get out, I’m going to find your house and shoot you”.
At the Oamaru house, police found the crossbow, arrows and fireworks.
Hartstone had told friends that the victim had struck his ute with an axe but examination of the vehicle showed no damage consistent with that version of events.
The defendant had also told his partner in the lead up to the shooting that he would “teach the victim a lesson”.
When interviewed by police, Hartstone admitted he wanted to shoot the man but claimed it was a friend who had fired the crossbow.
He said the victim had stolen his motorcycle and charged him $2000 for its return. Hartstone alleged he had his money stolen, had been kidnapped and beaten.
“The c... deserved to go in the ground,” Hartstone told police.
He was remanded in custody and will be sentenced in August.
