Jokes between friends about confrontations with Bingara man Darren Willis turned serious and led to his murder, a NSW court has heard.
Giving evidence on Wednesday, Scott Marle described the night of the alleged murder, saying he had gone over for beers, weed and a few yarns at the home of Bruce Coss and Robert Stonestreet in December 2010.
The trio discussed what would happen if they bumped into Mr Willis, who had acted strangely and had asked Mr Marle if he was trying to "root" him earlier that day at The Sportsmans Hotel.
Mr Marle said the friends were just having a laugh and being stupid over a few drinks when Coss said that he was going to kill Mr Willis.
It was like a scene from a movie, Mr Marle told the Supreme Court in Moree, with Coss using lines like "there's not going to be a tomorrow" and showing off a modified wooden baseball bat with a hose clamp around the end.
Coss, 49, is accused of killing Mr Willis with the bat in 2010. He has pleaded not guilty to the charge.
Mr Marle said he passed out after the discussion, but was woken up by the door banging. He went outside and heard Coss and Mr Willis speaking in the darkened street in front of the property.
"Darren said 'oh, I'll come back, we'll sort this out tomorrow' and that's when Bruce has said 'there's not going to be a tomorrow,' and I thought oh my f***ing god," Mr Marle said.
Coss then allegedly bludgeoned Mr Willis with the bat, telling his friends he was dead on returning to the house.
Mr Marle never saw the incident and never went out to see if there was a body, telling the court he was in shock.
The judge-alone trial heard Coss then loaded something onto the back of his ute using a trolley with a squeaky wheel, and drove up Narrabri Road.
"To my mind, he had Darren on the trolley," Mr Marle said.
Returning after a few hours, Coss allegedly told Mr Marle that he had gone fishing before washing up in the laundry and burning something in a fire drum near the home, the court heard.
Coss was arrested in October 2019 following a renewed investigation and an inquest.
Mr Willis' body has never been found.
The hearing continues.
