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A man accused of murdering a woman and attempting to murder her aunt in a stabbing attack around 30 years ago has said four people who claimed he confessed to them were not telling the truth.
Rickie Michael Tregaskis (53) is accused of murdering Barbara Mary Griffin (59) and attempting to murder Emma Maria Elvina Anton (85) in their flat on 2 August 1990.
He denies both charges.
Yesterday, Solicitor General Matthew Jowitt, prosecuting, asked Mr Tregaskis about the evidence of four people who taken to the dock to suggest that he had admitted the killing.
Mr Tregaskis responded firmly: “Every single one of them is wrong, Sir, and four wrongs don't make a right.”
In his summing up during the afternoon, Advocate Jowitt continued to reflect on the four witnesses' evidence.
He said that if Mr Tregaskis was “falsely accused by no fewer than four people who are entirely independent of each other, it must be a terrible series of coincidences."
"How dreadfully unlucky would a person have to be to find themselves an innocent target of such a case?" he questioned, going on to state that “the most obvious explanation must be the real one."
He argued that Mr Tregaskis confessed to them because he "felt safe" as he had previously been tried and acquitted. Advocate Jowitt argued Mr Tregaskis "knew the police can’t do anything about it, he can’t be tried for the same crime twice.”
Throughout the course of the trial, Advocate Rebecca Morley-Kirk, who has been representing Mr Tregaskis, had raised queries relating to the reliability of each witness. One admitted during cross-examination that he had schizophrenia and had previously heard Mr Tregaskis's voice telling him to do things, while another, who gave Mr Tregaskis a temporary place to stay, was asked about his drinking and drug use at the time.
She was due to sum up today, with Commissioner Sir John Saunders, presiding, due to provide guidance before the jury retire to make their verdict.
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