A Sydney man standing trial for the murder of a 17-year-old detained the boy, before beating him with a wrench, stomping on his head and instructing others to torture him, a court has heard.
Yigit Can Erdogan, known as John, has pleaded not guilty to murder and detaining a person in company to gain an advantage in a Supreme Court trial on Monday.
The 22-year-old is accused of orchestrating the torture and murder of Justin Tsang in 2019 over allegedly stolen property.
The body of the 17-year-old was found in a shallow grave in the Blue Mountains, wrapped in plastic and tape, eight days after he was last seen by his family.
The court would hear evidence that Tsang, who was found naked bar his underwear, had suffered 25 stab wounds to his neck, a fractured skull, and bleeding to the brain, prosecutor Ken McKay said when opening the crown case.
Tsang had been detained, threatened and hit by Erdogan on March 12, 2019, the prosecutor said, before he was forced into a car with a group and driven around in an attempt to obtain money from people who knew him.
When that was unsuccessful, the group - allegedly led by Erdogan - returned to a house where Tsang was stripped down to his underwear.
Witnesses are expected to give evidence that he was then beaten with a wrench by Erdogan and hit repeatedly with a cricket bat on his instruction.
"A knife was then obtained because Justin Tsang was still alive," Mr McKay said.
The knife was used by Erdogan and others, before Erdogan stomped on Tsang's head.
The group then cleaned up the house, and obtained materials to dispose of the teen's body, the prosecutor said.
The court would hear evidence from one of the men involved in the attack, who went to police in the days after and has escaped charge.
It would also hear from a former girlfriend of Erdogan, who says the man made admissions about his involvement to her.
But in opening the defence case for the jury, Angus Webb said while Erdogan admitted participating in some of the early parts of the alleged saga, and the clean-up, he disputes "anything in the middle".
"He was not present when those things occurred and did not participate in them," Mr Webb said, referring in particular to assaults with the knife and cricket bat.
The trial continues.
