Jury in Crawley murder trial retires to consider verdict

The jury in the trial looking at the death of Christina Abbotts in Crawley has retired to consider its verdict.
By The Newsroom
Published 20th Dec 2018, 09:47 BST
Updated 10th Jan 2019, 10:27 BST
Zahid Naseem will be sentenced tomorrowZahid Naseem will be sentenced tomorrow
Zahid Naseem will be sentenced tomorrow

Jurors heard the last of Judge Christine Laing QC's summing up this morning and were then sent out to start their deliberations.

UPDATE: The jury have no reached a verdict. Click here to read more.

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Zahid Naseem, 48, from Amersham, denies murdering 29-year-old Christina Abbotts on her birthday in May this year.

Zahid Naseem will be sentenced tomorrowZahid Naseem will be sentenced tomorrow
Zahid Naseem will be sentenced tomorrow

During the trial it has come to light that the pair met through Christina's secret life as a 'high class escort'.

CCTV from a Crawley supermarket appears to show the pair together buying Champagne, the last time she is seen in person alive.

During his evidence, Zahid Naseem told the court that he had struck Christina in self-defence because she was strangling him. The prosecution asked him if this was a 'pack of lies'.

The prosecution - led by Christopher Tehrani QC - alleged that a video shows Naseem pretending to be unconscious when police arrived at the scene.

The trial continues.