‘Evidence against murder accused not conclusive’
The evidence against a man accused of murdering a child killer is “not conclusive”, a jury has been told.
Ieuan Harley, 23, is accused of murdering David Gaut, 54, after learning he had served over 32 years in prison for killing a 15-month-old boy.
Yesterday Harley’s barrister, Caroline Rees QC, told the jury at Newport Crown Court that codefendant David Osborne, 51, had told “cunning lies” to police about her client’s involvement in order to shift blame away from himself.
Osborne had told the court he witnessed Harley stabbing neighbour Mr Gaut to death in his living-room, but the prosecution alleges he also took part in the planned killing.
Miss Rees said: “Osborne lies when it suits him to do so, and they are cunning lies despite his limitations.
“He is shifting the blame away from himself.”
Miss Rees said evidence pointing to Harley’s involvement was not conclusive, citing a pattern found in a pool of Mr Gaut’s blood that was matched to a pair of Reebok trainers owned by Harley.
Miss Rees said: “This case does not fall into the category of conclusive when it comes to footwear. “His trainers were tested for blood. No blood or DNA attributed to Mr Gaut was retrieved on either trainer.”
Miss Rees said it was Harley’s “right” to choose not to enter the witness box to give evidence, and repeated his claim that he “did not know” why his clothes which were saturated in Mr Gaut’s blood were found dumped near a river.
She suggested it was “possible” that Harley’s DNA found on the thumb lock of Mr Gaut’s door was transferred when he had visited the victim on an earlier occasion.
She also reminded the jury that Harley was later seen at a pub appearing “nonchalant” and “casual” just hours after Mr Gaut was allegedly murdered.
Miss Rees added: “If he had anything to do with it why did he not stay at home with a bottle of cider?
“If he committed the offence why on earth is he hanging around at all?
“Not only did he not escape or run away, he stayed in the same flat where the prosecution say he killed Mr Gaut.”
Osborne’s friend, Darran Evesham, 47, is accused of perverting the course of justice for allegedly helping the two defendants hide evidence of the murder.
Ali Bajwa QC, defending Evesham, said no DNA from his client had been found on socks which Osborne claims were used by the three to cover their hands while carrying Mr Gaut’s body back to his own flat.
He said there was no evidence Evesham had set fire to a car later claimed to have contained evidence from the killing, nor was there evidence, other than Osborne’s, that he had helped dump the bloodied clothing.
The court previously heard Mr Gaut died on the night of August 2 last year, after his neighbours in Long Row, New Tredegar, discovered he had killed toddler Chi Ming Shek in 1985.
Osborne, from Long Row, Elliots Town, New Tredegar, and Harley, of no fixed address, deny the murder of Mr Gaut between August 1 and 4 last year.
Harley and Evesham, from Powell’s Terrace, New Tredegar, also deny perverting the course of justice, which Osborne admits.
Evesham had earlier been acquitted of Mr Gaut’s murder on the direction of the judge.