Thursday, December 29, 2011
Anna Higgie Draws - Anna Is An Illustrator And Artist - Worth Taking A Look At Her Work
http://annahiggie.blogspot.com/
Anna inspired by belly- dancer Samantha which you may view on Anna's blog- stunning!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GkqUc7qNW3Q&feature=youtu.be
Anna inspired by belly- dancer Samantha which you may view on Anna's blog- stunning!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GkqUc7qNW3Q&feature=youtu.be
Wednesday, December 28, 2011
Friday, December 9, 2011
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Twitter to host Remembrance Day service
Remembrance Day service to include readings, hymns, names of those who gave their lives and a minute's silence
Twitter is to host a Remembrance Day service for the first time. Photograph: Dylan Martinez/Reuters
A Remembrance Day service will be held on Twitter on Friday and Sunday, using 140 characters for readings, hymns, the last post, the names of those who gave their lives and contributions from veterans.
The project, run by a group of Methodists, is aimed at bringing together traditional elements of prayer and worship with a digital approach for people who cannot attend a service or would not normally do so. It is thought to be the first time a remembrance service has been held on the micro-blogging site.
James Thomas, who thought of Tweet Remembrance, said: "I came up with the idea on Wednesday night. I wondered if there was going to be a two-minute silence on Twitter and then thought, why not have an entire service on there?
The two services, which start at 10.15 and observe the silence at 11.11, are ecumenical and organisers say everyone is welcome to take part. Tweet Remembrance appears on Twitter as @Poppy_Tweet.
Rev Joanne Cox is the Methodist minister providing the sermon.
#Exclusive : Conrad Murray Gives Exclusive TV Interview To UK Producer
Interview with Michael Jackson's doctor to be broadcast this week following conviction for involuntary manslaughter
Conrad Murray listens as the jury returns a guilty verdict in his Michael Jackson involuntary manslaughter trial on Monday. Photograph: Getty Images
Dr Conrad Murray, the doctor convicted of Michael Jackson's involuntary manslaughter, has given an exclusive TV interview to a UK independent producer that will be broadcast on Channel 4 later this week.
They secured exclusive access to Murray in November 2009, before he was charged.
Tom Roberts, the October Films founder and award-winning director, has been filming Murray for the past two years for a documentary that will be broadcast immediately before the interview.
Michael Jackson and The Doctor: A Fatal Friendship explores the relationship between the pop star and Murray, who did not take the stand during his trial.Murray was interviewed on 30 October by Steve Hewlett, media commentator and presenter of Radio 4's The Media Show, who was editor of Panorama when the BBC1 current affairs programme secured Martin Bashir's exclusive interview with Princess Diana in 1995.
Zodiak Rights has sold the interview and documentary to broadcasters including Channel 4, Australia's Nine Network and MSNBC in the US.
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
#JoYeates: #Tabak Kept Child Abuse Images
Vincent Tabak, the killer of Joanna Yeates, had images of children being sexually abused on his laptop and may face further prosecution, it was revealed yesterday.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/jo-yeatess-killer-kept-child-abuse-images-6255802.html
It was only after the Dutch engineer, 33, was convicted of murder on Friday that Bristol Crown Court heard that he enjoyed submission pornography, surfed sex sites for escorts and had images of women being choked, in a parallel with Ms Yeates's death.
It also came to light that he faced further questioning by police relating to material discovered on his computers.
Yesterday it emerged that Avon and Somerset Police had discovered images of child pornography. An officer involved in the investigation told the Bristol Evening Post: "Tabak had 30 images depicting child pornography. They were all category four images."
There are five levels of seriousness for offences involving indecent images of children.
Category four images depict penetrative sexual activity involving a child or children, or children and adults.
It also came to light that he faced further questioning by police relating to material discovered on his computers.
Yesterday it emerged that Avon and Somerset Police had discovered images of child pornography. An officer involved in the investigation told the Bristol Evening Post: "Tabak had 30 images depicting child pornography. They were all category four images."
There are five levels of seriousness for offences involving indecent images of children.
Category four images depict penetrative sexual activity involving a child or children, or children and adults.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/jo-yeatess-killer-kept-child-abuse-images-6255802.html
#JoYeates : #Tabak - Child Porn Found On Vincent Tabak's Laptop.
Murderer Vincent Tabak kept images of children being sexually abused on his laptop computer, police have discovered
The 33-year-old killer was jailed for life on Friday after a jury found him guilty of throttling 25-year-old Joanna Yeates.
Following his conviction at Bristol Crown Court it was revealed that the Dutch engineer was obsessed with images of women being strangled during sex and had perversions for violent pornography and prostitutes.
It also came to light that Tabak faced further questioning by police relating to material discovered on the hard drives of computers he used.
It has now been reported that Avon and Somerset Police discovered 30 images of youngsters being sexually abused.
An officer involved in the investigation, who asked not to be named, told the Bristol Evening Post that he and his colleagues wanted to clear up speculation surrounding these "other matters".
He said: "Tabak had 30 images depicting child pornography on his laptop computer at home.
"They were all category four images."
The officer said that, due to Tabak's conviction for murder and life sentence, he did not think the Crown Prosecution Service would take action.
There are five levels of seriousness for offences involving indecent photographs of children, which start with images depicting "erotic posing with no sexual activity".
Category four images depict penetrative sexual activity involving a child or children, or both children and adults.
Detective Chief Inspector Phil Jones, who led the murder investigation, confirmed: "During the examination of Vincent Tabak's computer, other material was found.
"We have referred this matter to the Crown Prosecution Service for initial guidance."
Once referred to the CPS they will consider a number of criteria before charging someone with an offence.
This includes whether it is in the public interest to do so.
Jurors in Tabak's trial were not told that videos found on his computers had chilling parallels with the way Miss Yeates died.
His pornography depicted blonde women being throttled during sex or bundled into car boots.
Two weeks before murdering the landscape architect, he also paid for sex with a prostitute during a business trip to Los Angeles.
But despite being blocked from hearing of his depraved sex secrets, jurors still found him guilty of murdering his next-door neighbour on December 17 last year.
The frozen body of Miss Yeates, who lived with her boyfriend, Greg Reardon, in a flat in Canynge Road, Clifton, Bristol, was found on Christmas morning by a couple walking their dog on a country lane in Failand, North Somerset.
Tabak was jailed for life by Mr Justice Field and told he would serve at least 20 years in prison before he could apply for parole.
PA
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/child-porn-found-on-vincent-tabaks-laptop-6255648.htmlThe 33-year-old killer was jailed for life on Friday after a jury found him guilty of throttling 25-year-old Joanna Yeates.
Following his conviction at Bristol Crown Court it was revealed that the Dutch engineer was obsessed with images of women being strangled during sex and had perversions for violent pornography and prostitutes.
It also came to light that Tabak faced further questioning by police relating to material discovered on the hard drives of computers he used.
It has now been reported that Avon and Somerset Police discovered 30 images of youngsters being sexually abused.
An officer involved in the investigation, who asked not to be named, told the Bristol Evening Post that he and his colleagues wanted to clear up speculation surrounding these "other matters".
He said: "Tabak had 30 images depicting child pornography on his laptop computer at home.
"They were all category four images."
The officer said that, due to Tabak's conviction for murder and life sentence, he did not think the Crown Prosecution Service would take action.
There are five levels of seriousness for offences involving indecent photographs of children, which start with images depicting "erotic posing with no sexual activity".
Category four images depict penetrative sexual activity involving a child or children, or both children and adults.
Detective Chief Inspector Phil Jones, who led the murder investigation, confirmed: "During the examination of Vincent Tabak's computer, other material was found.
"We have referred this matter to the Crown Prosecution Service for initial guidance."
Once referred to the CPS they will consider a number of criteria before charging someone with an offence.
This includes whether it is in the public interest to do so.
Jurors in Tabak's trial were not told that videos found on his computers had chilling parallels with the way Miss Yeates died.
His pornography depicted blonde women being throttled during sex or bundled into car boots.
Two weeks before murdering the landscape architect, he also paid for sex with a prostitute during a business trip to Los Angeles.
But despite being blocked from hearing of his depraved sex secrets, jurors still found him guilty of murdering his next-door neighbour on December 17 last year.
The frozen body of Miss Yeates, who lived with her boyfriend, Greg Reardon, in a flat in Canynge Road, Clifton, Bristol, was found on Christmas morning by a couple walking their dog on a country lane in Failand, North Somerset.
Tabak was jailed for life by Mr Justice Field and told he would serve at least 20 years in prison before he could apply for parole.
PA
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Sunday, October 30, 2011
#JoYeates : 'Sex And SubMission' - Information The Jury Did Not Hear.
Police think Tabak watched sex videos before killing Yeates. One of Tabak's favourite films - "Sex and Submission" - was set in a dungeon. When police searched his computer hard-drive, they found three images of a woman who looked like Joanna Yeates. In recent times he had moved from browsing violent fantasies online to paying prostitutes for services in trips to Newcastle and LA. The judge ruled that such details were inadmissible as evidence, so the jury weren't told about these during the trial.
http://keith-london.livejournal.com/4188910.html
http://keith-london.livejournal.com/4188910.html
#JoYeates : Landlord Criticises Police
Christopher Jefferies said he was very upset ast the media portrayal of him and his arrest and its aftermath were 'the most difficult time of my life'. Photograph: Tim Ireland/PA
The landlord arrested on suspicion of the murder of Jo Yeates has criticised police for wasting "time and attention" on him.
In an interview with ITV news, Jefferies said: "A lot of their time and attention was taken up with me. It's absolutely clear that the focus should have been elsewhere."
Jefferies, who was landlord of both Yeates and Tabak and lived in the same building, said he felt "numb" on arrest, and then angry.
"I knew that I was innocent. I was required to go through these very protracted series of interviews during the course of three days.
"Whether they were making other inquiries at the same time or not, I don't know."
Jefferies said he was very upset at the way sections of the media portrayed him. "This was an entirely foreign personality that was being foisted on me," he said.
Former public school teacher Christopher Jefferies was held for three days by detectives investigating Yeates' murder.
Jefferies, who was landlord of both Yeates and Tabak and lived in the same building, said he felt "numb" on arrest, and then angry.
"I knew that I was innocent. I was required to go through these very protracted series of interviews during the course of three days.
"Whether they were making other inquiries at the same time or not, I don't know."
Jefferies said he was very upset at the way sections of the media portrayed him. "This was an entirely foreign personality that was being foisted on me," he said.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/oct/28/yeates-landlord-criticises-police?CMP=twt_gu
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
#JoYeates #Tabak 'Clever And Deceitful'
The man accused of murdering Jo Yeates is "very clever" but also "dishonest, deceitful and a liar", a court has been told.
Prosecutor Nigel Lickley QC told Bristol Crown Court Tabak had sex on his mind when he went to her flat.
William Clegg QC, defending, said the evidence did not support the Mr Lickley's claims.
Miss Yeates, 25, was strangled at her home in Canynge Road, Clifton, on 17 December 2010.
Jurors heard the prosecution and defence's closing speeches as the trial draws to a conclusion.
The body of Miss Yeates, originally from Ampfield, Hampshire, was found by dog walkers on Christmas Day in Longwood Lane, Failand, North Somerset.
Mr Lickley said Tabak could have walked away from the attack on Miss Yeates.
The prosecutor told the jury: "Vincent Tabak is very clever, he is intelligent.
"There is another side to Vincent Tabak. He is dishonest, deceitful and he is a liar."
The prosecutor alleged the Dutch engineer had struggled with Miss Yeates as she fought for her life.
However, he went to her flat, with sex on his mind, Mr Lickley said.
Jo Yeates was found dead on Christmas Day 2010 "It goes to his intent and his intention to kill or cause really serious bodily harm.
"The whole incident is linked to sex. This is a killing linked to sex."
Mr Lickley also accused Tabak of making up his recollections of the night of 17 December.
He told jurors that, when Tabak gave evidence, he answered "can't remember" to more than 80 questions.
Defending Tabak, William Clegg QC appealed to the jury to reach a verdict based on the evidence alone.
"I am not going to ask you to excuse his conduct after the killing, there can be no excuse," he said.
He said Tabak's behaviour was "dreadful" and added: "But it does not alter what was in his mind at the time it happened.
'Seconds of madness'
Mr Clegg said the evidence did not support the prosecution's claims that Miss Yeates's death was "planned, premeditated and sexually motivated".
He said the prosecution could not explain how Tabak got inside Miss Yeates's flat and suggested Tabak's claim that he was invited in was correct.
He said the prosecution claim that Tabak had picked up Miss Yeates's cat and taken it to her flat were not supported by evidence.
"That goes a long way to destroy the suggestion that this killing was planned," Mr Clegg said.
He also asked the jury to accept Tabak's view that Miss Yeates died after 21:35 GMT and not shortly after she arrived home at 20:45 GMT.
Mr Clegg added that witness reports of screams coming from Canynge Road were more likely to be students than Miss Yeates.
"I am going to invite you to conclude this was a very short, fast-moving incident which would have been over in less than 30 seconds," he said.
"That is what this case is about - whether or not Vincent Tabak had formed an intention to kill or cause serious harm to Joanna Yeates.
"There was a few seconds of madness.
"We would invite you to say the fact he cannot provide a second-by-second account in what happened in that fast-moving, dynamic situation is really not surprising.
"Could you really expect it of anyone?"
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-15446142
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
#JoYeates #Tabak Denies Sexual Motive For Strangling Jo.
Joanna Yeates's killer denied he strangled her for his sexual gratification as he gave evidence for the second day in the murder trial yesterday.
With her father and boyfriend listening intently just feet away, Vincent Tabak maintained his composure under cross examination.
The 33-year-old Dutch engineer admits manslaughter but denies murder, insisting he never intended to kill Miss Yeates, a 25-year-old landscape architect.
Miss Yeates's disappearance after leaving drinks with colleagues last year led to a full-scale missing persons hunt which ended eight days later, on Christmas morning, when her body was found by dog walkers on a snowy verge three miles from her home. Her neighbour, Tabak, was arrested on 20 January.
Giving evidence for a second day at Bristol Crown Court, he was asked by the prosecutor, Nigel Lickley QC, whether his motivation in killing Miss Yeates was sexual: "Did you derive sexual gratification from holding her throat?" Tabak replied: "Definitely not." Admitting he was attracted to Miss Yeates, he insisted he was not excited when he tried to kiss her.
He had, he told the court, misunderstood her "cheery, happy" demeanor after she invited him into her flat. "We were standing close to each other; she invited me in for a drink. I though she was flirtatious," he said.
Earlier, the jury heard his claims that Miss Yeates had screamed when he went to kiss her and he had placed a hand over her mouth, killing her in a matter of 20 seconds. He added: "It was not my intention to harm her. I just wanted to calm her down and stop her from screaming."
The prosecution claims the fact that Miss Yeates had 43 injuries showed she had fought for her life. "There was no fight," Tabak insisted.
Contrary to claims he was cold and calculating in his attempts to cover up the crime, he said he was "in a state of panic" after dumping her body. But he conceded that he knew full well what he was doing as he covered his tracks over the next few weeks. "I misled the police, yes," he said. "And it is dishonest."
Tabak's voice shook as he told the jury that he was sorry for what he had done to Miss Yeates's parents, her boyfriend and to his girlfriend, Tanja Morson. His calm appearance was also shaken when he was shown an image of Miss Yeates's body in a foetal position at Flax Bourton mortuary, in Somerset. Later Dr Nat Cary, a forensic pathologist, insisted that it was "largely speculative" that the motive for the attack was sexual and his examination found it was extremely unlikely she had been assaulted that way.
The trial continues.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/tabak-denies-sexual-motive-for-strangling-2374261.html
Sunday, October 23, 2011
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
#JoYeates. #Tabak misread Joanna Yeates's friendliness, court told
Dutch engineer panicked after 25-year-old screamed when he tried to kiss her following invitation into her flat, barrister tells jury
Vincent Tabak, 33, who is on trial for killing his neighbour, Joanna Yeates, before Christmas last year, met her by 'pure chance' that night, his defence lawyer told the Bristol jury. Photograph: Rex Features
Vincent Tabak claims that he killed his next door neighbour Joanna Yeates after misreading her friendliness and trying to kiss her.
Tabak says the landscape architect let out a piercing scream causing him to panic and put one hand around her throat and the other over her mouth. Within seconds she lay lifeless.
More than 10 months after Tabak killed 25-year-old Yeates at her flat in Bristol, his account of what happened has finally been given in open court.
Three times during his opening speech Tabak's barrister, William Clegg QC, emphasised that it was pure chance that his client had ended up in the flat.
He had been on his way out when the pair had glimpsed each other through her kitchen window and she beckoned him for a friendly drink, Clegg said.
Twice Clegg said the jury would hear no excuses from him about Tabak's "disgusting" behaviour after he killed Yeates. The decision to hide the body – which remained concealed for eight days – had caused untold anguish and agony for her family. Tabak, he said, had shown himself to be very calculating.
Clegg's 40-minute speech – a precursor to Tabak's appearance in the witness box on Thursday – offered solutions to some of the puzzles of the case.
He said Tabak, 33, had dumped the pizza that Yeates had picked up on her way home in a large street bin. He had thrown Yeates's missing sock – which one tabloid had suggested had been kept by the killer as a trophy – in the same bin.
Clegg confirmed the body had been in the boot of Tabak's car when he went shopping to Asda and said he had transported it in a bag designed to keep his bicycle dry in bad weather.
Tabak's barrister began by telling the jury that the two, who were strangers, met by chance on Friday 17 December.
If Yeates had stayed in the pub for one more drink before walking home she would still be alive, he said, and similarly if Tabak had gone on a planned trip to the supermarket half hour earlier he would not be in the dock.
Clegg told the jury that both Yeates and Tabak, who admits manslaughter but denies murder, were "home alone and bored".
Yeates's boyfriend, Greg Reardon, had gone away for the weekend while Tabak's girlfriend, Tanja Morson, was at an office Christmas party.
The barrister said that after Yeates arrived back at her flat at about 8.30pm she put the oven on. She opened one of two bottles of cider she had just bought and may have drunk from it.
Tabak decided to pop out to an Asda supermarket. They saw each other through Yeates's kitchen window as he left his flat. The blind was broken and so could not be brought down. She beckoned him and invited him into her flat, the barrister said.
He took off his coat and she offered him a drink, which he declined. Clegg said they did not know each other and introduced themselves. Yeates said her boyfriend was away and he told her his girlfriend was out. "As the two talked inside the flat, Vincent Tabak completely misread the situation," said Clegg. "Joanna was being sociable as many neighbours would be, particularly at Christmas. He misread her friendliness towards him and made a move towards her as if he was about to kiss her on the lips." He put his hand on her back "to draw her close to him".
Clegg told the jury at Bristol crown court that Yeates let out a loud piercing scream. Tabak "put a hand over her mouth and said to her: 'Stop screaming'. He apologised, said he was sorry. He took his hand away and she carried on screaming.
"He panicked. He put one hand around her throat and the other over her mouth. In seconds, far less than a minute, Joanna went limp. She was dead."
Yeates's parents, David and Teresa and her boyfriend watched from the public gallery as Clegg told the jury: "He never intended to kill her. Nothing had been planned, nothing was premeditated."
The barrister said it was possible it had only taken 10 seconds for Tabak to kill Yeates. Tabak believes he had been in the flat for around 10 minutes before he moved towards her.
Clegg said his conduct after Yeates died when he hid the body was "frankly disgusting" and had caused untold anguish and agony to her family. He said Tabak had done everything he could to cover his tracks. He had told "lie after lie" to the police.
Clegg said Tabak's behaviour showed he was a very calculating person trying to wriggle out of his responsibility.
He said that after killing Yeates, Tabak returned to his flat, leaving Yeates' door on the latch.
He made the decision to move the body. He turned the oven off in Yeates' flat and put her body into a bicycle cover and placed it in the boot of his car.
Clegg said Tabak then went to Asda as he had planned. The barrister accepted this was not a rational thing to do. Afterwards he drove around in an aimless manner before reaching Longwood Lane, three miles from Yeates' home.
He tried to lift the body over a wall but was unable to, and left it covered in leaves at the side of the road. Clegg said he took the cycle cover, the pizza that Yeates had bought as she walked home and one sock that became separated from her body and dumped them in a large bin back in Bristol.
Then he carried on with his life, attending dinner parties, going to work, living with his girlfriend. "He should have phoned the police and told them the truth," said Clegg. "He never did."
Clegg concluded his opening speech by telling the jury Tabak is not being tried for what he did after he killed Yeates but "the very act that caused her death".
"What he is being tried for is whether when he killed Joanna Yeates that was planned, premeditated and something he intended to do," Clegg said. "That is the issue you have to focus on. We invite you to focus on that dreadful moment that Friday night in Joanna's flat."
Tabak is due to give evidence on Thursday.
Tabak says the landscape architect let out a piercing scream causing him to panic and put one hand around her throat and the other over her mouth. Within seconds she lay lifeless.
More than 10 months after Tabak killed 25-year-old Yeates at her flat in Bristol, his account of what happened has finally been given in open court.
Three times during his opening speech Tabak's barrister, William Clegg QC, emphasised that it was pure chance that his client had ended up in the flat.
He had been on his way out when the pair had glimpsed each other through her kitchen window and she beckoned him for a friendly drink, Clegg said.
Twice Clegg said the jury would hear no excuses from him about Tabak's "disgusting" behaviour after he killed Yeates. The decision to hide the body – which remained concealed for eight days – had caused untold anguish and agony for her family. Tabak, he said, had shown himself to be very calculating.
Clegg's 40-minute speech – a precursor to Tabak's appearance in the witness box on Thursday – offered solutions to some of the puzzles of the case.
He said Tabak, 33, had dumped the pizza that Yeates had picked up on her way home in a large street bin. He had thrown Yeates's missing sock – which one tabloid had suggested had been kept by the killer as a trophy – in the same bin.
Clegg confirmed the body had been in the boot of Tabak's car when he went shopping to Asda and said he had transported it in a bag designed to keep his bicycle dry in bad weather.
Tabak's barrister began by telling the jury that the two, who were strangers, met by chance on Friday 17 December.
If Yeates had stayed in the pub for one more drink before walking home she would still be alive, he said, and similarly if Tabak had gone on a planned trip to the supermarket half hour earlier he would not be in the dock.
Clegg told the jury that both Yeates and Tabak, who admits manslaughter but denies murder, were "home alone and bored".
Yeates's boyfriend, Greg Reardon, had gone away for the weekend while Tabak's girlfriend, Tanja Morson, was at an office Christmas party.
The barrister said that after Yeates arrived back at her flat at about 8.30pm she put the oven on. She opened one of two bottles of cider she had just bought and may have drunk from it.
Tabak decided to pop out to an Asda supermarket. They saw each other through Yeates's kitchen window as he left his flat. The blind was broken and so could not be brought down. She beckoned him and invited him into her flat, the barrister said.
He took off his coat and she offered him a drink, which he declined. Clegg said they did not know each other and introduced themselves. Yeates said her boyfriend was away and he told her his girlfriend was out. "As the two talked inside the flat, Vincent Tabak completely misread the situation," said Clegg. "Joanna was being sociable as many neighbours would be, particularly at Christmas. He misread her friendliness towards him and made a move towards her as if he was about to kiss her on the lips." He put his hand on her back "to draw her close to him".
Clegg told the jury at Bristol crown court that Yeates let out a loud piercing scream. Tabak "put a hand over her mouth and said to her: 'Stop screaming'. He apologised, said he was sorry. He took his hand away and she carried on screaming.
"He panicked. He put one hand around her throat and the other over her mouth. In seconds, far less than a minute, Joanna went limp. She was dead."
Yeates's parents, David and Teresa and her boyfriend watched from the public gallery as Clegg told the jury: "He never intended to kill her. Nothing had been planned, nothing was premeditated."
The barrister said it was possible it had only taken 10 seconds for Tabak to kill Yeates. Tabak believes he had been in the flat for around 10 minutes before he moved towards her.
Clegg said Tabak was guilty of a dreadful crime for which he must pay the price, but he added: "It wasn't something he had planned or intended … he reacted to her scream. He panicked and in a few seconds he discovered to his horror that she had died."
Clegg said Tabak's behaviour showed he was a very calculating person trying to wriggle out of his responsibility.
He said that after killing Yeates, Tabak returned to his flat, leaving Yeates' door on the latch.
He made the decision to move the body. He turned the oven off in Yeates' flat and put her body into a bicycle cover and placed it in the boot of his car.
Clegg said Tabak then went to Asda as he had planned. The barrister accepted this was not a rational thing to do. Afterwards he drove around in an aimless manner before reaching Longwood Lane, three miles from Yeates' home.
He tried to lift the body over a wall but was unable to, and left it covered in leaves at the side of the road. Clegg said he took the cycle cover, the pizza that Yeates had bought as she walked home and one sock that became separated from her body and dumped them in a large bin back in Bristol.
Then he carried on with his life, attending dinner parties, going to work, living with his girlfriend. "He should have phoned the police and told them the truth," said Clegg. "He never did."
Clegg concluded his opening speech by telling the jury Tabak is not being tried for what he did after he killed Yeates but "the very act that caused her death".
"What he is being tried for is whether when he killed Joanna Yeates that was planned, premeditated and something he intended to do," Clegg said. "That is the issue you have to focus on. We invite you to focus on that dreadful moment that Friday night in Joanna's flat."
Tabak is due to give evidence on Thursday.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/oct/19/vincent-tabak-joanna-yeates-court?CMP=twt_gu
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
#JoYeates #Tabak Confessed Jo Yeates Killing In Emotional Meeting With Prison Chaplain
Peter Brotherton, a voluntary Salvation Army chaplain at Long Lartin prison in Worcestershire said the Dutchman had unburdened himself on February 8 this year.
He said Tabak had requested a meeting, informing him: “I have something to tell you that will shock you.”
Giving evidence at Bristol Crown Court, Mr Brotherton said: “I said ‘you tell me and we will see’, or words to that effect.
“He said ‘I am going to change my plea to guilty’. He said it was to do with the crime he had committed.
“I said, ‘is this concerning the young lady from Bristol?’, he said ‘yes’.” ...read more
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/8834133/Vincent-Tabak-confessed-Joanna-Yeates-killing-in-emotional-meeting-with-prison-chaplain.html
#JoYeates : Heartbroken Mum Of Jo Yeates Weeps Openly In Court As Image Of Her Daughters Body Is Shown To The Jury.
The mother of landscape architect Jo Yeates wept as a photograph of her daughter's body was shown to a jury.
Vincent Tabak, 33, admits Miss Yeates's manslaughter but denies murder.
Miss Yeates, originally from Ampfield, Hampshire, was strangled at her flat in Clifton, Bristol, on 17 December 2010. Her body was found on Christmas Day.
The court has been told she suffered 43 injuries before she was killed.
The photograph was among images shown to the jury on Friday, when Mr and Mrs Yeates were not in court.
On Tuesday, it was shown during the evidence of forensic scientist Tanya Nickson.
She had examined bloodstains found on a wall next to where Miss Yeates was found on Christmas morning in Failand, near Bristol.
'Confession' to chaplain
Ms Nickson said the blood pattern indicated smearing rather than splattering - meaning it was unlikely that Miss Yeates had been assaulted there.
She told the court: "The presence of the blood on the top of the wall may indicate that an attempt was made to deposit the body over the top of the wall."
Ms Lennen also examined DNA samples taken from Miss Yeates's body, her clothes and from the boot of Tabak's Renault Megane car.
Tests showed that both Miss Yeates's and Tabak's DNA were recovered from her body
The analysis of DNA recovered from the boot of Tabak's car showed a match to Miss Yeates and there was less than a one in one billion chance that it was not her blood.
Jo Yeates was found dead on Christmas Day after going missing on 17 December He said Tabak told him on 8 February that he had something to tell him that would "shock" him.
Tabak confided in Mr Brotherton, who has been visiting prisoners for 25 years, when he was was being held in the prison's health unit.
Mr Brotherton said Tabak told him: "I'm going to change my plea to guilty," and added it was to do with a crime he had committed.
The chaplain told the court that he asked Tabak at the time: "Is this concerning the young lady in Bristol?," to which Tabak replied "yes".
Mr Brotherton went on to ask him: "Are you sorry for what you have done?" He told the court that Tabak again replied "yes".
"I advised him he must tell his defence solicitors," Mr Brotherton said.
Prison chaplain Peter Brotherton said Tabak told him he had news that would "shock" him Mr Brotherton said he decided he could not keep the information secret because Tabak was not religious and the conversation was reported to a senior member of staff.
Some days later Mr Brotherton told Tabak he was sorry he had to disclose the information. Tabak told him: "Well I'm not going to tell you anything else," he said.
"I think there was a bit of anger in his voice."
During cross-examination, Tabak's QC William Clegg claimed Mr Brotherton's comments differed from a statement he gave on 16 February.
Mr Clegg said: "Let me suggest to you there was no suggestion of 'changing my plea'. 'I am going to plead guilty' - that's what he said.
"You said 'What for?'. And he said 'For the crime I have done'."
When the barrister suggested some of his evidence was incorrect, Mr Brotherton replied: "If that's what you say, I would agree with you."
'No comment'
After Tabak was arrested on 20 January, he was interviewed by detectives from Avon and Somerset Police.
He was first questioned by Det Con Richard Barnston at Trinity Road police station.
The court heard that each interview was under caution but Tabak largely exercised his right to give no comment.
He then gave police a prepared statement where he claimed that he did not know Jo Yeates and he had never spoken to her or her boyfriend Greg Reardon.
"Until her picture was shown prominently in the press I would not have recognised her," he told police.
In a second prepared statement he said he had "no knowledge" of how his DNA allegedly came to be found on Miss Yeates's body and clothing and disputed that it was his DNA.
In his statement, he then claimed evidence may have been leaked to the press from the laboratory for "financial gain".
In another interview, he repeatedly answered "no comment" to police questions including whether he had been invited to Miss Yeates' flat, and whether he had made sexual advances towards her.
The case was adjourned until Wednesday.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-15350510
Monday, October 17, 2011
#JoYeates : Murder Trial Day Six...
Vincent Tabak claims he throttled Joanna Yeates in just 20 seconds after failing to stop her screams, a court heard today.
Part of the killer's account was heard for the first time as her boyfriend described his panic after she went missing.
Greg Reardon told how annoyance at returning to a messy flat turned to "buzzing stress" as he realised she had disappeared.
Mr Reardon appeared in the witness box after prosecutor Nigel Lickley QC read an extract from Tabak's defence statement on September 22.
Mr Lickley said Tabak was facing his 25-year-old victim when the attack took place.
"He put one arm around her back with his hand in the middle of her back," Mr Lickley said.
As Miss Yeates screamed, Tabak - who admits manslaughter but denies murder - says he initially put his other hand over her mouth.
Mr Lickley said: "He removed his hand from her mouth and the screaming continued. He then put his hand around her throat.
"He believes it was the one that had been from behind her back and held it there for about 20 seconds."
As evidence continued into a second week at Bristol Crown Court, the victim's best friend, Rebecca Scott, told how Miss Yeates and Mr Reardon were "the perfect couple".
Tabak sat in the dock with his hands covering his face as Mr Reardon told how he had realised Miss Yeates was missing after returning Sheffield to their flat in Clifton, Bristol.
He told jurors he paced around the flat, tidying as he went, and trying to piece together what may have happened.
Mr Reardon had returned from visiting relatives in Sheffield to an empty flat on Sunday December 19.
He said he had repeatedly called and texted her over the weekend after leaving Miss Yeates with a "hug and a kiss" on the Friday.
"I was quite annoyed that I had not been told what her plans were and she had not got back to me and I was starting to feel quite worried," he told the jury.
Worry turned to panic after he found her mobile phone and then keys.
Mr Reardon told jurors: "I started pacing around the flat. I had this increasing buzzing level of stress.
"I didn't know what was going on, so I walked around the flat and, trying to find out what she might have done, so I went tidying up as I went, trying to find out what she was wearing by looking at what was out.
"I panicked really. It was midnight. It was a realisation that now something is wrong."
The jury was shown CCTV footage of Miss Yeates, who had been off work with a cold the previous day, wearing her white ski jacket as she walked with Mr Reardon through the snow on the morning of December 17.
The pathologist who inspected her body was questioned about Tabak's evidence as he was re-examined by the prosecution.
Mr Lickley asked Dr Russell Delaney about Tabak's statement that he held Miss Yeates's throat "for about 20 seconds".
Dr Delaney replied: "That period of time would be sufficient to cause the signs of venous obstruction and would be long enough to result in her death."
Tabak's QC William Clegg suggested his client used just one hand to strangle her.
Miss Yeates is said to have suffered 43 injuries at the hands of Tabak on December 17.
Her body was found "in a foetal-type position" on Christmas Day by dog walker Daniel Birch.
Mr Birch and his wife, Rebecca, spotted the pocket of her denim jeans exposed through the snow as they walked their chocolate Labrador Roxy along Longwood Lane, Failand, Somerset.
The case was adjourned until tomorrow when the court will hear from more prosecution witnesses.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/vincent-tabak-strangled-joanna-yeates-for-20-seconds-2371832.html
Saturday, October 15, 2011
#JoYeates: #Tabak - Images Of Jo Yeates Body Shown To The Jury
Pictures of Jo Yeates's body have been shown to jurors in the trial of her alleged murderer.
Bristol Crown Court was told forensic officers used a broom handle to help recover her body from the snow-covered lane near the city where it was found.Dutch engineer Vincent Tabak, 33, Miss Yeates's neighbour, admits manslaughter but denies murdering the 25-year-old.
Her body was found by dog walkers on Longwood Lane in Failand on Christmas Day - eight days after she disappeared.
Jurors heard Daniel Birch and his wife Rebecca had opened their presents early and were walking their dog on Longwood Lane near Bristol soon before 09:00 GMT on 25 December 2010.
Bruise marks
In a police statement, Mr Birch said he had seen a lump in the snow and what appeared to be a denim jeans pocket on the left-hand verge.
After walking past, he and his wife turned back after Mr Birch realised it was a body.
Tabak lived next door to Jo Yeates When pathologist Russell Delaney took the stand, a Dutch interpreter was brought into the dock to ensure Tabak understood medical terms.
The jury was shown pictures of landscape architect Miss Yeates's body "in a foetal-type position".
Prosecutor Nigel Lickley QC earlier told the court that Miss Yeates, originally from Ampfield in Hampshire, suffered 43 separate injuries during a violent struggle when she was strangled by Tabak.
'In pain'
Dr Delaney told the jury that red bruise marks were shown on her neck and chin and there was blood underneath her nose.
He said: "Bruising only occurs when the heart is beating - so the injuries occurred during life."
Reading out the conclusion of his findings, he said: "Miss Joanna Yeates died as a result of manual compression of the neck.
"It is not possible to quantify the amount of force applied or the duration of the compression that resulted in unconsciousness and death.
"The physical signs of neck compression indicate she did not die instantaneously.
"The forceful application of pressure to her neck would have been uncomfortable.
"She would have experienced difficulty in breathing and I would have expected her at some point to be in pain.
"Nothing was identified at the post-mortem examination to indicate she was incapacitated by another means and therefore I would have expected her to struggle."
The trial continues.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-15306505
Thursday, October 13, 2011
#JoYeates :Vincent #Tabak drank champagne the night after 'strangling' Joanna Yeates
Vincent Tabak, 33, appeared his usual self after the killing and, following another social gathering, even offered to see home safely a female friend who was worried about what had happened to Miss Yeates, the court was told.
The night after the killing, Tabak was described as “bored” and “disinterested” at the party as he stared across the room and drank a glass of champagne.
The previous evening, Miss Yeates told her friends that she was dreading being home alone at her Bristol flat for the first time hours before her neighbour killed her, the court heard.
During an after-work drink, the landscape architect said she was not looking forward to the weekend because her boyfriend, Greg Reardon, with whom she lived, was visiting his family in Sheffield.
Elisabeth Chandler, the office manager at BDP, the firm where Miss Yeates and Mr Reardon worked, told Bristol Crown Court in a written statement: “Jo told me that she was dreading the weekend because it was the first time she was going to be left on her own. Her partner Greg, who I know, was going away.” ...read more
http://t.co/yYtVUvnw
#JoYeates #Tabak 'Joked' About Body Hunt
The killer of Bristol landscape architect Jo Yeates jokingly suggested to friends they look in drawers for her body, a court has heard.
Witnesses also told the jury they heard screams in the area around Miss Yeates' flat on the night she disappeared.
Tabak admits manslaughter but denies murdering the 25-year-old.
Miss Yeates went missing on 17 December 2010, and her snow-covered body was found on Christmas Day.
'Detached crazy person'
The trial heard a statement from solicitor Sarah Maddock, a friend of Tabak's girlfriend Tanja Morson.
She said Tabak and Miss Morson had attended a dinner party in the St Andrews area of Bristol after Miss Yeates's death, where Miss Maddock speculated that the murder was mystifying.
She added: "I think I remember Vincent agreed with the statement and may have added 'either that or someone would have to be a totally detached crazy person to be able to act normally after doing something like that'."
“Start Quote
Jo did tell me that she was dreading the weekend because it was the first time she was going to be left on her own”
End Quote Elizabeth Chandler
In a police statement which was read out in court, party host Andrew Lillie said: "Vincent just said a small remark about opening a drawer so they could look for a body."
The jury also heard evidence from Harry Walker who said he heard a scream on the evening of 17 December.
He heard the "human noise" between 20:15 and 20:50. "At the time I thought it might be students after a party but it was a bit early for that," he said.
Florian Lehman told the court he and his wife Zoe were arriving at a party at 53 Canynge Road - opposite Miss Yeates' flat - on 17 December when they heard two screams.
"They were quite loud. They seemed to me to come from quite a distance," he said.
"It was definitely a female voice. I thought it might be playing kids."
Colleagues of Miss Yeates, who had seen her on the day she died, also gave evidence on Thursday.
'Just jovial'
Elizabeth Chandler, an office manager at BDP where Miss Yeates worked, said: "Jo did tell me that she was dreading the weekend because it was the first time she was going to be left on her own.
"Her partner Greg [Reardon] was going away."
Tabak lived next door to Jo Yeates Miss Yeates disappeared after leaving the pub in Park Street and walking back to her Clifton flat.
When prosecution barrister Nicholas Rowland asked Mr Bellew whether she was drunk when she left the Ram, he told the jury: "Not at all. Just jovial, her usual self."
Michael Brown, who also worked with Miss Yeates, told the court: "She said she didn't have any plans for the weekend and appeared bored and she planned to do baking."
He said that colleagues had bought Miss Yeates a pint-and-a-half of cider but added she was not slurring her words and did not appear unsteady on her feet.
The trial continues.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-15289139
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
#JoYeates : Jury Visits Joanna Yeates Flat
Jurors at the Joanna Yeates murder trial today walked into a flat frozen in time.
They visited Miss Yeates's home which was poignantly preserved with personal belongings and Christmas decorations since she was killed on December 17.
Amid a heavy police presence, Mr Justice Field helped the jury retrace her steps through Bristol's upmarket Clifton district.
They briefly saw the garden flat where defendant Vincent Tabak lived before spending 22 minutes next door at Miss Yeates's home.
Inside, many belongings and mementoes had been left unmoved since her life was cut short at the age of 25.
Boyfriend Greg Reardon had returned to collect his possessions but Miss Yeates's clothes, belongings and furniture remained, the jury was told.
Miss Yeates's size five Asics running shoes had been left stacked in the yellow-painted entrance hall alongside her snow boots.
There were also two cat litter trays for the couple's pet.
The jury then walked into the living room, witnessing the scene of a couple preparing for Christmas.
There was a roll of unused wrapping paper under a table, an unopened box of Christmas crackers and shelves adorned with tinsel.
Miss Yeates's multi-coloured cycle helmet had also been left on show.
On the shelves in the couple's living room were puzzle games and memorabilia from the cult sci-fi comedy Red Dwarf, including a picture montage with cast members and personal messages to "Jo and Greg".
Family pictures had been left at the flat but had been turned away from the jury's view.
Despite a damp smell after 10 months without heating in the basement flat, the layout of the living room remained untouched with a white two-seater sofa and dark blue L-shaped seating with white cushions.
The curtains were drawn with tinsel decorated along the rail.
There were obvious signs of police attempts to gather DNA evidence, with red dots and dust residue showing where detectives had found fingerprints.
Also on show was a bowl of Love Hearts sweets, postgraduate architecture notes, a box of pain killers, letters from a bank and a box of Christmas cards.
The jury was also shown the bedroom she shared with Mr Reardon.
Carpets had been removed by police but the couple's double bed and duvet remained with two wardrobes full of clothes and a bedside table adorned with perfumes, make-up and cuddly toys.
There was a half-used pink bottle of Lacoste fragrance as well as ornate boxes for her hairpins and brushes.
There was also a hairdryer on show and an empty bottle of cider in the living room.
There was further sign of police evidence taking in the small kitchen and bathroom, where a handful of bottles of shampoo and conditioners had been left. The shower and bath unit had been heavily dusted for fingerprints.
Plants had died on a hanging basket outside Miss Yeates' blue front door to the side of the building.
Before visiting the flat - which is set back on Canynge Road - the jury was taken in convoy on a luxury black coach up Park Street, where Miss Yeates had begun her night.
With police closing off the hill, the bus briefly stopped outside the BDP office, where she worked, then paused again outside the Bristol Ram pub where she had joined colleagues.
They disembarked the coach near Clifton Village, where they were guided on foot under clear blue skies through the bustling food stalls outside the Clifton Arcade.
The jurors were then walked around the corner to the Tesco Express - where Miss Yeates bought a pizza - and a shop, formerly named Bargain Booze, where she picked up some cider.
After CCTV cameras were pointed out to them at the Hophouse pub and on the corner of Canynge Road, they were taken down the narrow path entrance to Miss Yeates' home.
Dead cactuses and pot plants lined the sash windows outside. The jury also inspected the small window to the kitchen.
Miss Yeates suffered 43 injuries after being attacked by Tabak inside the flat, prosecutors claim. She was said to have suffered a slow and painful death.
Tabak's QC, William Clegg, had asked the jurors to think about four issues closely during the visit.
He wanted them to consider the time and distance it would take to walk from the Hophouse public house to Miss Yeates' home.
He also asked them to consider carefully the view from the kitchen window of her flat.
The jurors completed their trip by visiting the verge where her body was found on Christmas Day.
Unlike the snowy scenes last December, Longwood Lane was covered in autumn leaves as the coach arrived, flanked by police motorbikes and unmarked cars.
They briefly stopped at a spray-painted yellow mark where she was found.
Earlier they had crossed over Canynge Road to No 53 to stand by the front door, at Mr Clegg's request.
The barrister told them: "We would like you to go there and have in mind, having already been to No 44, whether in your judgment you think it possible that the scream that was made inside the flat of No 44 could possibly be heard if you are standing outside No 53?
"The defence are going to suggest that it was by no means certain that the scream that was heard was connected to this event at all because of the distance involved."
Jurors also walked the short distance to Percival Court, which is adjacent to the rear of Miss Yeates's flat at 44 Canynge Road.
Tabak, 33, kept his crime secret for more than six weeks before confessing to a prison chaplain, prosecutors claim.
Dutch engineer Tabak admits manslaughter but denies murder.
The case was adjourned to return to Bristol Crown Court tomorrow, when the jury will hear the first evidence from witnesses.