Lucky Gattellari tried to persuade one of the contract killers in the murder of Sydney businessman Michael McGurk to take the fall for all of the conspirators.
"If the shit hits the fan, I would like you to put something in your handwriting clearing everybody," Gattellari is heard saying to Haissam Safetli, who was wearing a wire.
On the evening of September 3, 2009, Safetli, then 45, and Christopher Estephan, 19, drove to Mr McGurk's Cremorne house and shot him in the back of the head as he was getting out of his car.
Gattellari, the Crown's star witness, along with Safetli and Estephan, have pleaded guilty to their roles in the murder.
Related Content
Wealthy Sydney property developer Ron Medich has pleaded not guilty to the murder of Mr McGurk and to the subsequent intimidation of Mr McGurk's widow, Kimberley.
A Supreme Court jury has heard that Mr Medich was enraged over a string of lawsuits in which he and Mr McGurk were embroiled and, in late 2008 and early 2009, Mr Medich asked Gattellari, his then close friend, to organise the contract killing.
Gattellari said that, after initially baulking at the cost, Mr Medich agreed to pay the $300,000 Safetli demanded.
Gattellari told the jury that Mr Medich had met Safetli only once, and that was at a cigar night after the murder.
A year after the murder, the police were closing in. A number of those involved had been hauled before the NSW Crime Commission, the jury heard.
On September 15, 2010, Gattellari organised a meeting inside his lighting factory at Chipping Norton.
He told the jury that he thought the noise of the equipment would make it impossible for police to overhear what they were saying.
He did not realise that Safetli was wearing a wire. During the meeting, Gattellari was heard expressing concerns that "the kid" [Estephan] was going to crack.
He urged Safetli to "put his hand up" to save the rest of them.
"You need, you need to say no one else was involved," Gattellari was heard telling Safetli.
In return, they would look after his family and take care of his legal costs. Gattellari told the jury that the late Les Samba was due to arrive from interstate with some money to put into Safetli's lawyer's trust account.
At the clandestine meeting, Safetli was also heard asking Gattellari if the "big boss" was all right.
Gattellari replied, "Yeah, oh they are putting a lot of pressure on him" and that he was going through a divorce.
The jury has been reduced to 14 after a male juror was discharged for personal reasons.
The trial continues.