Bristol man Barach Bandavad accused of murder tried to set car on fire with Judith Ege's body inside, court told

A MAN accused of murdering a woman tried to set fire to her car with barbecue lighter fuel, a court heard.

Bristol Crown Court heard barbecue lighting gel and a match were found near the fuel filler cap of a hired Vauxhall Corsa in which Judith Ege suffered catastrophic slashes to her neck and chest.

And a fingerprint analyser confirmed to the that the palm and finger prints of former soldier Barach Bandavad were traced on the fuel cap and a bottle of barbecue lighter gel found in a bag linked to him.

Bandavad, 38, an Abbey Wood Ministry of Defence worker of Highbury Road, denies murdering 58-year-old Mrs Ege on June 30 last year.

Business Cards From Only £10.95 Delivered www.myprint-247.co.uk

myprint-247

View details

Print voucher

Our heavyweight cards have FREE UV silk coating, FREE next day delivery & VAT included. Choose from 1000's of pre-designed templates or upload your own artwork. Orders dispatched within 24hrs.

Terms: Visit our site for more products: Business Cards, Compliment Slips, Letterheads, Leaflets, Postcards, Posters & much more. All items are free next day delivery. www.myprint-247.co.uk

Contact: 01858 468192

Valid until: Friday, May 31 2013

The jury has heard Mrs Ege and her husband visited Bandavad after he split with Mr Ege's daughter Samantha.

The arrangement was to collect Samantha's possessions from the home in Highbury Road, Horfield, and Bandavad cooperated in loading the car, the court has heard.

Suddenly, the jury was told, Bandavad's mood changed and he demanded that the three of them go for a drive, showing that he was armed with a gun and two knives.

It is alleged that when Mr Ege ran, hoping that Bandavad would follow, Bandavad carried out a "murderous" assault on Mrs Ege as she tried to defend herself in the back of the car.

The Crown says Bandavad then deposited barbecue lighting gel in an attempt to set fire to the car following the attack.

Detective Sergeant Michael Porter told the jury the Corsa was removed from the scene to a secure garage, and items found inside it included two knives and two mobile phones.

He said that when a white, oily substance was detected around the car's filler cap he liaised with Army bomb disposal and local fire officers, who were satisfied the substance was stable.

DS Porter said both a spent match and specimen of the substance were put in sealed containers and sent off for analysis.

Julyan Isaac, a forensic scientist, confirmed the substance matched the contents of a bottle of barbecue lighting gel recovered by police.

Scrutinising photographs of the Corsa, he told the court: "The barbecue lighting gel is not going to ignite like petrol. The barbecue lighting gel is blocking the fuel pipe, so if you set a match against it, it would not ignite the lighting gel."

Michelle Harvey, a finger print analyser, said she looked at images taken of fingerprint lifts from the Corsa's driver's door handle, the bottle of barbecue lighting gel, two plastic bags and the fuel filler cap.

She said all the lifts matched Bandavad's fingerprints.

The jury was also told prints of both Mrs Ege's bare feet were detected on the front nearside window of the car.

The case continues.