THE skeletal remains of a murdered fisherman were discovered by a young man searching for cannabis crops, the Supreme Court has heard.
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Duane Anthony Taylor gave evidence yesterday in the murder trial of 61-year-old Stephen Roy Standage.
Mr Standage is accused of killing Ronald Frederick Jarvis, 37, in July 1992 and John Lewis Thorn, 59, in August 2006.
He has pleaded not guilty to both crimes.
Mr Taylor, who was then 20 years old, found Mr Jarvis's remains in remote Nugent bushland seven months after his disappearance.
The court heard Mr Taylor was in the area with his father and a friend, who had gone out wallaby shooting.
Mr Taylor said he had tagged along on the shooting trip after being told by a friend there was cannabis in the area, which he was determined to find and take.
"My father didn't know that until we were actually down in Nugent," Mr Taylor said.
Mr Taylor said he had become separated from the shooters after smelling marijuana and setting off into dense bushland to track the scent.
The court heard it took Mr Taylor a few moments to realise he had stumbled upon the dead man's remains.
Mr Taylor told the court he "got out of there as quick as he could" to alert his father.
His father, retired police officer Peter Athol Taylor, also gave evidence yesterday.
"[Duane] came to me and said he'd found a body ... I told him he'd found a dead kangaroo," Mr Taylor said.
When asked his son's response, Mr Taylor replied: "He said [kangaroos] don't wear clothes."
Defence lawyer Tamara Jago, SC, asked Mr Taylor whether he had any connection to the dead man.
The witness was asked whether he owed Mr Jarvis money, provided him with marijuana or used him as a drug informant.
Mr Taylor denied the claims, saying he did not know Mr Jarvis.
When asked if he had anything to do with Mr Jarvis's death, Mr Taylor replied: "Did I what? ... No, I did not."
The trial continues today.
