Pootawamimka, a member of the Too-rong-doon group, was shot by Thomas Murray, a stockman employed by John Harris, on 3 January 1843, near Mt Bryan. Harris informed the police of the conflict on 8 January, and he and Murray gave depositions to the Resident Magistrate in Adelaide on 9 January. Edward Eyre, the Magistrate based at Moorundie, heard of Pootawamimka’s murder from some Aboriginal people from the Mt Bryan district. The account provided by Harris and Murray differed greatly from the account given by those who spoke with Eyre and Moorhouse was instructed to investigate.
(See 'The South Australian Frontier and its Legacies' for more details.)