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A High Court jury in Dunedin has found 35-year Rajinder guilty of the murder Gurjit Singh. 

The jury returned its verdict roughly 24 hours after retiring, including an overnight break. 

Rajinder, who goes by a single name in court documents, stood emotionally facing Justice Rachel Dunningham as the verdict was read. 

He will be sentenced on April 1 next year. 

Singh, a well-known member of Dunedin’s Indian community, was found outside his Pine Hill home on January 26, 2024, with 46 stab or slash wounds and partially decapitated. 

The Crown alleged the killing was a targeted, premeditated attack fuelled by personal resentment and rejection. 

The defence, however, claimed the Crown’s evidence was entirely circumstantial. 

Crown prosecutor Richard Smith told the jury the attack was deliberate and not a burglary or theft gone wrong. 

He described a violent struggle that began inside Singh’s home and moved through the lounge and sunroom before continuing onto an outdoor decking area. 

Smith said Singh had returned from a pizza party with friends shortly before the confrontation and was attacked in a calculated and persistent manner. 

Gurjit Singh's body was found outside his home with 46 stab or slash wounds. Photo / Ben Tomsett 

He told the jury Rajinder had previously been rejected by a woman Singh later married and had also had a marriage proposal to Singh’s sister turned down. 

Police evidence, Smith said, showed Rajinder purchased gloves and a knife before the killing and sustained injuries inconsistent with his explanations. 

Blood from both Rajinder and Singh was found in Rajinder’s vehicle, supporting the Crown’s theory of his movements after the attack. 

Defence counsel Anne Stevens KC told the jury the Crown’s case was entirely circumstantial. 

She noted there was no confession, no witness to the murder, and no proven motive. 

The jury trial took place at the Dunedin High Court. Photo / George Heard 

Stevens argued the knife and gloves could have innocent explanations and said alternative possibilities existed, including that someone else committed the murder. 

She suggested the Crown had pieced together multiple threads of evidence to form a narrative that did not necessarily prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt. 

Rajinder is remanded on bail until sentencing. 

Ben Tomsett is a multimedia journalist based in Dunedin. He joined the Herald in 2023.