Farm worker on trial for murder after amputating man's leg for $5,000

A farm worker agreed to amputate the leg of a Far North Queensland man in exchange for $5,000 cash, a court has heard.

But as Kalman Tal, 66, began to die from blood loss following the removal of his left foot, prosecutors allege the man who amputated it in a public park left the scene without calling for help.

John Yalu, 41, is on trial at the Supreme Court in Cairns, having pleaded not guilty to murder.

Mr Yalu and Mr Tal both lived in the Far North Queensland town of Innisfail and had come to know one another weeks before the amputation, the court heard.

In her opening address to the jury today, Crown prosecutor Nicole Friedewald said Mr Tal offered Mr Yalu money to amputate his leg because he had been in pain for many years.

"The defendant's first reaction to that request, as he told police himself, was to say, 'Let's go and speak to the police,'" Ms Friedewald told the court.

"Mr Tal didn't want to do that and the pair exchanged phone numbers.

"At some stage, the defendant enquired of Mr Tal if he had seen a doctor about the pain in his leg.

Court hears battery-powered saw used

Mr Yalu agreed to perform the amputation , the court heard, and he met Mr Tal at the Innisfail riverfront after 3am on February 19, 2022.

The court heard Mr Yalu used a battery-powered circular saw to cut off Mr Tal's foot above the ankle.

The jury has been shown grainy security camera footage from a seafood shop overlooking the riverfront park.

Ms Friedewald told the court the cameras captured the amputation and showed Mr Tal appearing to then hop toward his car before falling to the ground and crawling.

Mr Yalu was arrested later that day drinking with a group of other men at an Innisfail home.

Ms Friedewald said Mr Yalu told police during an interview that he agreed to perform the amputation and that Mr Tal had brought a bag of tools to the riverfront.

But as Mr Yalu later helped Mr Tal to his car, he told police he "noticed Mr Tal was passing out".

"I thought I would call the ambulance but then I didn't even have their number in my phone."

Police asked Mr Yalu what he thought would happen to Mr Tal.

"He replied: 'I was thinking he was just going to die because he was losing so much blood,'" Ms Friedewald told the court.

Police found a bloodstained white envelope containing $5,000 in a drawer where Mr Yalu had been staying, the court heard.

A passer-by, Richard David, found Mr Tal bleeding and alone, the court heard.

Mr David has since died, but the court was read his statement in which he recounted how Mr Tal was in the gutter next to his car, barely able to speak.

Mr Tal handed Mr David a phone, which was already connected to Triple-0, the court heard.

"The whole time I was there the man didn't say anything more to me," Mr David's statement said.

"He was holding his leg and rocking back and forwards."

Mr Tal was pronounced dead at 4:30am, the court heard.

Trial to focus on intent

The court heard Mr Yalu did not dispute that he caused Mr Tal's death unlawfully by performing the amputation.

At the start of the trial yesterday, he pleaded guilty to an alternative charge of manslaughter.

Ms Friedewald said for Mr Yalu to be found guilty of murder, the Crown had to prove Mr Yalu intended to cause Mr Tal grievous bodily harm.

"The definition [of grievous bodily harm] includes the loss of a distinct part of the body," Ms Friedewald told the jury.

"The prosecution case, to make clear to you now, is the defendant deliberately amputated Mr Tal's foot using a circular saw."

Mr Yalu's defence counsel, Jacob Kantor, did not make an opening address to the jury.

The trial, before Justice James Henry, is expected to run for seven days.