A childhood friend of manslaughter-accused Himatjit Kahlon has given evidence at the Auckland High Court that he too had received Honey Bear beer from Kahlon.
Aiden Sagala died last year at age 21 after consuming liquid meth from a beer can. The Crown contended he was given the can by Kahlon, whose manslaughter and drug charges trial began yesterday.
The Crown’s case is that Kahlon was in charge of beer that was held at a Papatoetoe warehouse which had received 700kg of methamphetamine — some of the meth was in liquid form in the beer cans when it was found — and because of that, he had a legal responsibility to ensure no one was harmed by that dangerous substance.
Crown lawyer Pip McNabb earlier told the court the actual beers had no real value and so Kahlon needed to get rid of them.
Today, Varinderjit Singh Loona confirmed he was one of a number of friends that the court has heard received beer from Kahlon.
Loona told the court he received “slabs” of the beer in March 2023 and also helped deliver boxes to another friend Daljit Gill.
Aiden Sagala died after unknowingly drinking liquid meth out of a beer can in March 2023. (Source: 1News)
Loona was asked whether Kahlon ever asked for any of the beers back.
“Yeah, when that incident happen with that guy, he indicate ‘don’t drink those beers’. Might be something wrong, but he haven’t told me what’s wrong with those beers.”
Jury shown inside Auckland warehouse
The court has heard there was about 700kg of meth in the property. (Source: 1News)
Gill told the court he’d given boxes of beer to a neighbour and one other person.
Loona became emotional on the stand as he recalled the good turns Kahlon, a Fonterra team leader, had done both his wife and himself when they arrived in the country in 2015.
“He help in every way. You can pick every person in our group… I know that 10 to 15 boys that can say that.
“He treat[ed] my son like a grandson.”
Drug traces in Sagala’s blood
Toxicologist Wendy Popplewell said testing detected about 20mg of meth per litre of Sagala’s blood.
The sample was taken the night Sagala was admitted to hospital. Meth traces were also detected in his urine.
“This level of methamphetamine was considerably higher than the top of our standard range,” Popplewell said, explaining the sample had to be diluted for the test to work.
The body breaks methamphetamine down into amphetamine, she added.
The level of methamphetamine relative to the much lower level of amphetamine in Sagala’s blood and urine indicated a “recent acute intake or dosage” of meth, Popplewell said.
The trial continues.
