Trial of husband accused of wife's murder to take place in January

Friday 24 August 2018

The trial of a man charged with murdering his wife will now take place early next year.

59-year-old Mr Alfredo da Costa Rebelo is charged with murdering 51-year-old Ana Rebelo at their home in Victoria Street, in April. He denies the charge.

The trial was originally expected to be held this week. However, because Mr Reblo’s lawyer fell ill, that hasn’t happened.

Fixing a date then became a problem as it was difficult to find a slot in the court diary when all the expert witnesses would be available. At one point, it looked as if the trial wouldn’t happen until March next year - something Commissioner Sir Michael Birt recently described as being "far from ideal."

Pictured: Mr Rebelo appearing at an earlier Royal Court hearing.

The problems now seem to have been ironed out. In a Royal Court hearing this morning, it was decided that the trial will start on Monday 28 January next year. Ten days have been set aside for the hearing.

Mr Rebelo, who has pleaded not guilty, has been remanded in custody.