A man accused of murdering two people, who died after being forced into a toolbox and dumped in a creek, admitted killing the pair in a police interview.

February 11, 2020

A man accused of murdering two drug dealers who were shoved in a toolbox and dumped in a creek confessed to killing the duo during a police interview.

Cory Breton and Iuliana Triscaru’s decomposing bodies were found in a large metal box in February 2016 at Scrubby Creek, south of Brisbane.

Tuhirangi-Thomas Tahiata, 28, has pleaded not guilty to murdering the pair after they were lured to a townhouse in Kingston 18 days earlier.

But in a police interview, Tahiata made admissions to the crime.

“I murdered them. I had them in my car … I done it by myself near Kingston Park Raceway,” he said in a recording played in his Brisbane Supreme Court trial on Tuesday.

“I swam them out, and I stood on top of them. I heard them scream, everything.”

However, he said he “had no idea who was in the toolbox”.

“I knew there was two because that’s all they told me,” he said.

He made the confessions after earlier denying any involvement, telling police he was at a church service in Sunnybank on the day the pair disappeared.

“I’ve no f***in’ reason to kill someone,” he initially told Detective Nicole Tunks.

“All I wanna do is just f***in’, save up for a house, f***in’ pay it off, that’s it. Live happy. Get stoned.

“I don’t wanna f***in’ waste time killing someone.”

During the interview Tahiata repeatedly referred to his drug use, often at a townhouse where Mr Breton and Ms Triscaru were bashed and held captive before being forced into the toolbox.

“After work I’ve gone and had a sneaky cone with them you know, ‘cause they’re on the way from work,” he said when asked about visiting the unit.

When shown CCTV images from the day of his green Toyota Hilux ute with a toolbox on the back, Tahiata said he’d lent it to a man named Punchy, who is also known as Trent Thrupp.

Prosecutor David Meredith has previously told the trial Tahiata’s ute was used to transport the toolbox with Cory Breton and Iuliana Triscaru still alive inside to the waterway beside the Logan Motorway.

He also told the jury that after Tahiata helped load the toolbox on his ute, he and Thrupp drove to the nearby creek.

Tahiata allegedly helped carry the box to the shore as Mr Breton and Ms Triscaru screamed for help from inside.

Thrupp then pushed the toolbox into the water but it didn’t immediately sink, Mr Meredith said.

He said Tahiata then handed Thrupp a hammer so he could punch holes into the side of the box.

The trial continues.