A high-ranking Mongrel Mob member is alleged to have destroyed the vehicle used to kill a rival gang member.

Henare Raukokore Swinton denied being an accessory after the fact to the manslaughter of Tribesman gang member Don Henry Turei Jr.

Swinton is on trial at the High Court at Hamilton this week.

On November 26, 2016, Turei was run off the road as he attempted to reach a family wedding reception at the Waihau Fishing Club on the East Coast.

Swinton, captain of the Aotearoa Mongrel Mob chapter in Rotorua, is alleged to have helped destroy the Honda Odyssey van used to kill Turei.

The driver of the van, Porirua Mongrel Mob member Andre Robert Taiapa, is serving six years and four months in prison after admitting a charge of manslaughter.

A second man, Jared Renata Te Moana, was sentenced to 15 months in prison for setting the van on fire.

On Monday morning, a jury of eight women and four men were chosen.

In her opening statements, Crown prosecutor Anna Pollett told the jury there were three significant events on the day Turei was killed.

About 250 people attended a wedding ceremony at Raukokore Church, among them several Tribesmen gang members.

There was also a tangi in the area for a young woman, which several Porirua Mongrel Mob members attended, and an unveiling for a former captain of a local Mongrel Mob chapter.

Tensions came to a head on the day and a truce was called, where the Tribesman agreed to remove their patches when travelling in the area.

Turei was unaware of this and about 2.30pm, he and his brother drove past a Mongrel Mob pad wearing their colours.

Taiapa started chasing after Turei in a white Honda Odyssey filled with gang members. Taiapa caught up with Turei and rammed the back of his motorcycle, causing the rear wheel to become jammed under the front wheel of the Odyssey.

Turei ended up in a ditch outside the entrance to Pararaki Marae. He died a short time later, despite the efforts of a passing doctor.

The gang members from the van then began yelling gang phrases, Pollett said.

She told the jury the gang members went back to the gang pad and bragged about the killing.

The white van was then moved to a second location. Later that night, it was moved again to a spot near the Raukokore River, where it was set on fire.

It was found by police several days later. The licence plates had been removed and attempts had been made to remove identifying details.

It was during the destruction of the vehicle that the Crown alleges Swinton got involved.

However, in his opening statement, defence lawyer Jonathan Temm said there was no evidence his client was involved.

The trial is presided over by Justice Pheroze Jagose. It is set down for a week.

-Stuff/Donna-Lee BIddle.