Gable Tostee has pleaded not guilty to the murder of Tinder date Warriena Wright as his trial starts in Australia.
Having been on a two week holiday in Gold Coast for a friend’s wedding, New Zealander Warriena Wright took to Tinder to find a holiday romance.
However the trip took a turn for the worse when she matched with Gable Tostee, 30, on dating app Tinder.
The two met for the first time on the evening of the 7th August 2014, ending the night at Tostee’s Surfers Paradise apartment, a Brisbane court heard.
And according to a recording on Tostee’s phone, the two argued in the early hours of 8th August, which led to Wright being restrained by her date.
Crown prosecutor Glen Cash then told the court that Tostee became enraged when Wright threw decorative rocks and hit him with a telescope.
In the phone recording taken from the night, Tostee is heard saying: “You’re lucky I haven’t chucked you off my balcony you god damn psycho bitch.
“You’re not going to collect any belongings, you’re just going to walk out. If you try to pull anything I’ll knock you out, I’ll knock you the f*** out – do you understand?”
This led to Tostee locking Wright outside of his 14th floor apartment, where witnesses reported hearing Wright shouting: “No, no, no, please let me go home.”
The court heard that just 15 seconds after being locked outside, Wright fell to her death.
Prosecutor Cash argued that Wright died when she tried to escape by climbing down from Tostee’s balcony, and that the 30-year-old did not throw Wright to her death.
Defence lawyer Saul Holt said Wright became increasingly erratic and unpredictable following a night of drinking and intimacy with Tostee, saying: “What happened in this case is nothing like murder or manslaughter. It doesn’t fit.”
The trial is still ongoing but is expected to conclude in the coming weeks, with Tostee facing a potential life sentence if convicted.