The remains of a man who was shot dead at his rural property were first spotted in the burned-out ruins of his home by locals. 

Damien Sandilands, the initial suspect in the murder investigation, and Jeffrey Rowe arrived at the fire and told Urenui chief fire officer Donald Moratti that Sidney Ross Bridson would have been inside. 

The house, along Waitaanga Rd, east of Taranaki, was “completely flat on the ground”, and parts were smouldering while others still had flames breaking through the rubble. 

Specifically, the men said Bridson, 55, would have been in his lounge and, standing at the burn line with Moratti, they pointed to where that room would be located. 

They then asked Moratti what he thought “that was”. 

“It was a lump,” Moratti said yesterday, while giving evidence in the trial of Stefan Hannon-McGinn and Ethan Howe. 

Moratti said at that stage he could not identify it as anything in particular and only noticed it because it was pointed out. 

The Waitaanga Rd home of Sidney Ross Bridson before it was destroyed by fire in October 2023. 

He reported a “potential deceased person”, and after other police and fire officers examined the object, it was confirmed to be human remains. 

DNA testing later identified them as Bridson. He was found with a gas canister underneath him. 

Hannon-McGinn, 28, and Howe, 27, are on trial in the High Court at New Plymouth charged with murder. 

The Crown says Bridson was shot in the stomach on the deck of his home in the early hours of October 11, 2023, before being dragged inside his property, which was then set alight. 

It is alleged the accused acted at the request of Mathew David Hannon, the father of Hannon-McGinn. 

Hannon and Bridson were neighbours who feuded over several issues, including hunting in the area, described by witnesses as the “Wild West”. 

Hannon-McGinn admits to shooting Bridson, causing his death, but claims self-defence. He pleaded guilty to arson at the beginning of the trial, while Howe denies both the murder charge, on the basis that he was there but not criminally responsible, and the arson. 

The aftermath of the fire at Sidney Ross Bridson's home on Waitaanga Rd. The home of his neighbour, Mathew David Hannon, is the left building pictured in the background. 

Multiple injuries 

Yesterday, during the second week of the trial, pathologist Dr Katherine White gave evidence that Bridson, who was terminally ill with cancer, died from a shotgun wound to the abdomen. 

She said there were multiple pellets from the single shot, which caused several injuries, including to his aorta, liver and kidney. 

Bridson would have died quickly from the injuries, White said. 

She also gave evidence that Bridson was discovered lying flat on his back. 

Taumarunui police detective Gregory Resink told the trial there was a butane gas canister found directly under Bridson’s remains. 

Following his evidence, Christine McGinty, Fire and Emergency New Zealand specialist fire investigator, said the gas was not the source of the fire, but could have assisted it. 

She said that due to the damage, the exact cause of the fire could not be determined. 

The trial of Stefan Hannon-McGinn and Ethan Howe is being heard in the High Court at New Plymouth. 

When cross-examined by Hannon-McGinn’s lawyer, Nicola Manning, McGinty was shown a photo of Bridson’s home, which had a crawl space underneath. 

Manning suggested there was no way of knowing where the gas canister was when the fire started, to which McGinty agreed. 

‘I didn’t murder him’ 

Last week, the trial heard from Sandilands, who gave evidence that Rowe had woken him up on the morning of the fire and told him Bridson’s house was ablaze. 

He said Bridson always sat in the same place in his home, and he and Rowe “hoped for the best” while driving to the fire. 

Sandilands had been at Bridson’s the evening before his death. 

Much of the evidence he gave in court differed from his earlier statement to police and the evidence of others, including about what time he left Bridson’s and how intoxicated Bridson was. 

Sandilands denied having smoked methamphetamine with him that night. 

While being questioned, Sandilands made comments about how he’d had “bad blood chucked” over him following Bridson’s death, but that he “didn’t do it”. 

“I didn’t murder him,” he said in response to a suggestion he was still at Bridson’s at 2am. 

The trial has heard that Sandilands, who left the Waitaanga area shortly after Bridson’s death, was a suspect for a few weeks, until the investigation turned its focus on Hannon-McGinn and Howe. 

The pair were arrested and charged almost a year after Bridson’s death. 

The trial before Justice Helen McQueen is set down for four weeks. 

Tara Shaskey is an assistant editor and reporter for the Open Justice team. She joined NZME in 2022 and has worked as a journalist since 2014.