A friend of a man who was allegedly beaten to death at his front door said he seemed worried "for his life" the last time he saw him alive.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Danny Klobucar, 27, is on trial in the ACT Supreme Court for the murder of Miodrag Gajic, 71, on New Year's Day 2014.
Klobucar is alleged to have met Mr Gajic for the first time only days earlier, when he tried unsuccessfully to buy cannabis from him at his Phillip unit.
It is alleged that Klobucar had an obsession with paedophiles and became suspicious of Mr Gajic because he owned a Nissan Micra, which the accused allegedly described as a "gay car".
There is evidence that Klobucar had mental health problems, and his mother said his state was deteriorating in December 2013.
Klobucar then went back to the home on New Year's Day, the Crown say to kill Mr Gajic.
But Daniel Davis, a friend of Mr Gajic, told the ACT Supreme Court on Wednesday that the older man was extremely careful about his security, and would never have let someone inside unless he knew them well.
Mr Davis also said the last time he saw Mr Gajic alive, he seemed stressed, worried, and scared.
He said Mr Gajic strangely shook his hand three times when he left, and had something in his face that suggested he was "worried about something".
When asked whether he knew what Mr Gajic was worried about, he responded:
"I didn't know at the time no, but obviously it was for his life."
"That's what I think. That's what I feel."
"I could just tell in his face, he was worried and he was scared."
That appeared to differ from what Mr Davis said in his statement to police, made on the day of the killing, when he is recorded as describing Mr Gajic as "happy and healthy".
The witness said that he had told police his friend was physically healthy, and that he did not personally write the statement. But he agreed he had signed the final statement prepared in his name.
"I was pretty shocked at the time," he said.
"They made me do it just after I'd seen him."
Klobucar has denied he caused Mr Gajic's death, saying he was already dead when he went to the apartment.
He is also relying on a defence of mental impairment, should he be found to have been the killer.
The trial continues on Thursday before Justice Hilary Penfold.
