An Australian man who was cleared of killing his Tinder date has said in a TV interview he often records nights out “just in case” something happens.
Gable Tostee, 30, was acquitted of the murder of 26-year-old New Zealand woman Warriena Wright, who plummeted to her death from his 14th floor apartment balcony.
Mr Tostee had made secret audio recordings on his phone which captured an argument between the pair as well as the balcony fall.
The audio records Mr Tostee saying: “You’re lucky I haven’t chucked you off my balcony. If you try to pull anything, I’ll knock you out.”
In a controversial TV interview following the not guilty verdict, Mr Tostee said he often records nights out.
He told Australia's 60 Minutes programme: “I used to go out quite a lot drinking, I don't have the best memory when I drink.
"It's better off having something and not needing it than needing it and not having it."
Mr Tostee was found not guilty of both murder and manslaughter of the tourist after four days of deliberation by the jury.
The carpet layer, who was paid $150,000 – or £90,000 to take part in the TV interview – was asked whether he was “heartless” and why he locked Ms Wright on the balcony, the BBC reported.
He said: "(The altercation) was a lot, lot closer to the balcony door, and it was wide open, and it was the logical option at the time.”
Asked if he was heartless, he said: "When you put it that way, when that's all you say about a person, with no insight or explanation, you know, the media can make people think what the media wants people to think."
Mr Tostee was also asked to explain why he called a lawyer – rather than an ambulance or the police – immediately after the fatal balcony fall.
He said: “Nobody is trained for a situation like this. It's like being hit by lightning. There is no right or wrong way to proceed from there.
"What had happened had happened, and there's nothing an ambulance could do to change that."
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The “bizarre” TV interview and reported payment sparked controversy in Australia with viewers hitting out at Mr Tostee’s seeming lack of emotion.
