• Ahwen Kohn allegedly killed a mate with an axe
• Convinced female friend to load the body into the car
• Allegedly had a knife in his belt upon arrest
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Horrific details of an alleged axe attack during a deadly camping trip have been revealed in court after one man died and a woman was injured.

Ahwen Kohn, 26, appeared in Bail Court via video link on Tuesday over allegations he murdered the man, 33, and choked a woman, 25, at Little Styx River Campground, east of Armidale, on Sunday night.

Kohn is alleged to have fatally struck the man in the head with an axe before attacking the woman when she tried to call an ambulance.

Instead of calling paramedics, Kohn convinced the woman to load the body into a car and drive away, the court was told.

Police reports said she then drove the body from Ebor to Thora, about 60km away, to find help. 

Emergency services found the man’s body with ‘significant trauma to the head’, the court heard.

After the woman left with the dead man’s body, ‘[Kohn] approached another witness and asked for a lift to the main road,’ the prosecutor told the court.

The accused then allegedly got into an argument with the witness, who wanted to know what had happened. The court heard Kohn replied: ‘You don’t want to know.’

When Kohn was in the car with the witness, he repeatedly asked whether there was a police station in nearby Guyra.

Kohn was arrested on Waterfall Way in Ebor about 11.30am on Monday, 24 hours after the alleged murder. 

The court heard police allegedly found a knife in his waistband. 

Two crime scenes were established – one at the campsite, and another in the woman’s car.

Kohn’s Legal Aid lawyer Matthew Spicer made an application for bail, telling the court his client had a ‘limited criminal history’ and would comply with strong conditions.

The police prosecutor opposed bail, telling the court Kohn’s murder charge would result in a life sentence if there was a guilty finding.

Kohn remained silent throughout proceedings. 

Magistrate Miranda Moody agreed Kohn had no history of violence, but described the murder allegation as ‘serious and brutal’.

She said his previous offences included drug and driving charges, and destroying property.

Magistrate Moody described the prosecution’s case as ‘strong’, noting there were witnesses, and Kohn allegedly tried to avoid police detection.

‘[The case is] involving an axe to the deceased, and I consider that’s a concern as well.’

Kohn was denied bail.

Following his arrest on Monday, Kohn was charged with three offences including murder, intentionally choking a person with recklessness, and assault occasioning bodily harm. 

NSW Police Superintendent Chris McKinnon confirmed on Monday the group were known to each other.

‘It’s always a terrible thing that someone ends up dead from an altercation like this,’ he told reporters.

‘It’s understood that they were known to each other and they were camping together along with a female.

‘We know that male [from Thora] received a lift from someone else who was camping nearby and he was dropped at Waterfall Way.’

Kohn will appear in Armidale Magistrates Court on April 22.

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