Convict says Knox, ex-lover killed roommate in Italy
Source: Agencies |
June 28, 2011, Tuesday
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The first man convicted in the murder of Amanda Knox's roommate testified yesterday that he believes she and her ex-boyfriend are guilty, an accusation that prompted the American student to say she was "shocked and anguished."
"He knows we weren't there," Knox said emotionally moments after her accuser, Rudy Hermann Guede, had left the courthouse.
The testimony by Guede, a 24-year-old immigrant from the Ivory Coast, was closely watched in the packed courtroom in Perugia, Italy. He had been called as a witness for the prosecution in the appeals trial of Knox and Raffaele Sollecito, her Italian ex-boyfriend and co-defendant.
Knox and Sollecito were convicted for the November 1, 2007, slaying of British exchange student Meredith Kercher, whose body was found in a pool of blood in the apartment she and Knox shared in Perugia.
Prosecutors claimed in Knox's first trial that Guede, Knox and Sollecito killed Kercher in what had begun as a sexual game.
Taking the stand, Guede confirmed the contents of a letter he wrote to his lawyers last year, which ends with a direct accusation to Knox and Sollecito. In the March 2010 letter, which was read out loud in court, Guede wrote that he had nothing to do with the "horrible murder of the splendid and wonderful Meredith Kercher by Knox and Sollecito."
"This is a thought I've always had in my mind," Guede told the court yesterday. "It's not up to me to decide who killed Meredith Kercher," he added. "I've always said who was there that damned night in that house." Guede is serving a 16-year-prison sentence for the murder. He was escorted in court by police in handcuffs.
Knox and Sollecito were convicted of sexual assault and murder in a separate proceeding. She was sentenced to 26 years in prison, he to 25.
"Raffaele Sollecito, Guede and I have only been in the same place in a court," Knox said. "I'm shocked and anguished by these statements."
Knox and Sollecito have maintained they were at Sollecito's house the night of the murder. Their defense lawyers claim Guede was the killer and acted alone.
"He knows we weren't there," Knox said emotionally moments after her accuser, Rudy Hermann Guede, had left the courthouse.
The testimony by Guede, a 24-year-old immigrant from the Ivory Coast, was closely watched in the packed courtroom in Perugia, Italy. He had been called as a witness for the prosecution in the appeals trial of Knox and Raffaele Sollecito, her Italian ex-boyfriend and co-defendant.
Knox and Sollecito were convicted for the November 1, 2007, slaying of British exchange student Meredith Kercher, whose body was found in a pool of blood in the apartment she and Knox shared in Perugia.
Prosecutors claimed in Knox's first trial that Guede, Knox and Sollecito killed Kercher in what had begun as a sexual game.
Taking the stand, Guede confirmed the contents of a letter he wrote to his lawyers last year, which ends with a direct accusation to Knox and Sollecito. In the March 2010 letter, which was read out loud in court, Guede wrote that he had nothing to do with the "horrible murder of the splendid and wonderful Meredith Kercher by Knox and Sollecito."
"This is a thought I've always had in my mind," Guede told the court yesterday. "It's not up to me to decide who killed Meredith Kercher," he added. "I've always said who was there that damned night in that house." Guede is serving a 16-year-prison sentence for the murder. He was escorted in court by police in handcuffs.
Knox and Sollecito were convicted of sexual assault and murder in a separate proceeding. She was sentenced to 26 years in prison, he to 25.
"Raffaele Sollecito, Guede and I have only been in the same place in a court," Knox said. "I'm shocked and anguished by these statements."
Knox and Sollecito have maintained they were at Sollecito's house the night of the murder. Their defense lawyers claim Guede was the killer and acted alone.
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