ACT court jury finds man guilty of destroying Weston Creek skatepark brawl evidence to influence legal proceeding

An ACT Supreme Court trial beginning on Monday heard after the skatepark fight between two groups in September that year, when one man died, three teenage boys from the opposing group went to the offender's premises where they spoke about the incident.

One of the three boys had since admitted seriously wounding a 16-year-old boy from the other side by knifing him in the back, the court heard.

At the premises of the man found guilty on Wednesday, he said words to the effect of "shit, what are you stupid?" when he was told the stabber had the hat of the teenager he knifed.

The man, 18 at the time of the incident, then grabbed the hat, which had been stuffed down the pants of the stabber, and placed it in a plastic bag.

A few days later, the man, who is not named for legal reasons, burnt the hat in his backyard.

When police executed a search warrant at his house, the man, who was not involved in the brawl, downplayed what he knew, the prosecution alleged.

The man again did not tell police the full picture during a formal interview a few days later.

After he told his uncle he burnt the hat, police executed another search warrant at his premises where they said they had been tipped off about potential evidence being destroyed.

Police pressed him further and he eventually said, "Ok, I f---ing did it, I burnt the hat".

The court heard he told police reasons for burning the hat included "not getting caught" and "just trying to be loyal to a mate".

He said it may have also been to protect his little brother, who was friends with the stabber.

"In a way, I wasn't protecting my brother because he wasn't involved, so I guess I was protecting [the stabber] ... It was a stupid f---ing decision, I guess," he said.

Prior to the discussion at his house, the man had seen the numerous police vehicles at the skatepark while on his way home from a party and had been told about the brawl.

The man pleaded not guilty to a charge of destroying or concealing evidence intending to influence a decision about starting a legal proceeding.

The court heard there was no dispute about most of the elements of the charge and the critical issue was his intention related to burning the hat as it could have been evidence.

That is, whether he intended to influence police about charging him or anyone else.

In his closing address on Wednesday, prosecutor Trent Hickey said what the man knew from his friends telling him about the skatepark incident meant "it must've been clear to all of them" the hat was significant.

"Imagine just how worried the accused must've been to not have any physical evidence linking back to the crime scene," Mr Hickey said.

He said the man lying to police, whose first search warrant involved the charge of accessory after the fact, by not initially revealing information about the hat was relevant.

"Because the inference you'd draw is that he feared it'd link him as an accessory to what happened at the skatepark," Mr Hickey said.

"Even if [the offender] told it out of panic or because he was scared ... the only reasonable inference you'd draw is he told the lie and later burnt the hat because he didn't want police to charge him or someone else."

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Defence barrister Travis Jackson said his client was a young man caught up in a situation created by others and wanted to protect his brother.

"He had no skin in the game ... is it just a scared, young man whose emotions were raw at the time?" Mr Jackson said.

"Placed into this situation due to the actions of others, or put bluntly, the stupidity of others," he said.

He told the jury his client omitted information that was later revealed instead of lying, as the prosecution argued.

He said that prosecution argument was "bereft of human experience and human frailty" that excluded the circumstances of the case and urged the jury to "put this matter in the dustbin of history".

Evidence during trial included some of the young people who went to the accused's place after getting involved in the skatepark incident.

Police evidence was also presented. Sentencing proceedings are scheduled for Friday.

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