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| Army parachute failure 'not a conceivable accident', court hears | Army parachute failure 'not a conceivable accident', court hears |
| (3 months later) | |
| Victoria Cilliers, wife of sergeant accused of her attempted murder, told police of her shock at near-fatal jump | |
| Press Association | |
| Fri 27 Oct 2017 14.11 BST | |
| Last modified on Fri 27 Oct 2017 14.35 BST | |
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| The wife of an army sergeant accused of tampering with her parachute has said her fall was “not a conceivable accident” and that she should not have survived it. | The wife of an army sergeant accused of tampering with her parachute has said her fall was “not a conceivable accident” and that she should not have survived it. |
| Victoria Cilliers told police in a video interview shown to Winchester crown court of her shock after she found out the cause of the near-fatal jump at the Army Parachute Association at Netheravon in Wiltshire on 5 April 2015. | Victoria Cilliers told police in a video interview shown to Winchester crown court of her shock after she found out the cause of the near-fatal jump at the Army Parachute Association at Netheravon in Wiltshire on 5 April 2015. |
| Her husband Emile, of the Royal Army Physical Training Corps, is accused of her attempted murder by removing two slinks from her reserve parachute – vital parts that connect the harness with the lines. | Her husband Emile, of the Royal Army Physical Training Corps, is accused of her attempted murder by removing two slinks from her reserve parachute – vital parts that connect the harness with the lines. |
| The 42-year-old told detectives in the interview recorded on 3 May 2015: “It’s not really a conceivable accident. You can’t categorically say it was not an accident, you can’t categorically say it was, but never in the history of parachuting worldwide has it happened. | The 42-year-old told detectives in the interview recorded on 3 May 2015: “It’s not really a conceivable accident. You can’t categorically say it was not an accident, you can’t categorically say it was, but never in the history of parachuting worldwide has it happened. |
| “Those slinks do not just disappear, even when wrongly assembled. I shouldn’t have survived that and that was a real shock, which I was finding it pretty hard to deal with.” | “Those slinks do not just disappear, even when wrongly assembled. I shouldn’t have survived that and that was a real shock, which I was finding it pretty hard to deal with.” |
| Cilliers is accused of tampering with his wife’s parachute by taking it with him to the hangar toilets, where he allegedly twisted the lines of the main parachute and removed the slinks from the reserve. Victoria Cilliers said she had been talking to friends for five to 10 minutes while her husband was with the parachute. | Cilliers is accused of tampering with his wife’s parachute by taking it with him to the hangar toilets, where he allegedly twisted the lines of the main parachute and removed the slinks from the reserve. Victoria Cilliers said she had been talking to friends for five to 10 minutes while her husband was with the parachute. |
| In an earlier interview, she told police he had been “one or two minutes”, but in court she said she had exaggerated the timescales in the second interview to “get back at him”. | In an earlier interview, she told police he had been “one or two minutes”, but in court she said she had exaggerated the timescales in the second interview to “get back at him”. |
| The physiotherapist said their marriage began to deteriorate in November 2014 when her husband went on a skiing trip with the army, during which he stopped saying that he loved her. | The physiotherapist said their marriage began to deteriorate in November 2014 when her husband went on a skiing trip with the army, during which he stopped saying that he loved her. |
| She said: “He came back very different and sat down and said he didn’t want to be in this marriage and ‘I think we got married too quickly’.” | She said: “He came back very different and sat down and said he didn’t want to be in this marriage and ‘I think we got married too quickly’.” |
| She said she was devastated and became suspicious when he went on an impromptu New Year trip to Germany and also started sending “inappropriate messages” to other women. “I didn’t even get a ‘happy new year’ text. I was waiting up hours,” she said. | She said she was devastated and became suspicious when he went on an impromptu New Year trip to Germany and also started sending “inappropriate messages” to other women. “I didn’t even get a ‘happy new year’ text. I was waiting up hours,” she said. |
| She also said she had found a receipt for a meal at a Nando’s restaurant when he said he had been at the army mess. “I love the guy and our marriage and our family and I had been asked to wait, heavily pregnant, not knowing if he was going to stay with us,” she said. “It’s hard at the best of times, let alone heavily pregnant. | She also said she had found a receipt for a meal at a Nando’s restaurant when he said he had been at the army mess. “I love the guy and our marriage and our family and I had been asked to wait, heavily pregnant, not knowing if he was going to stay with us,” she said. “It’s hard at the best of times, let alone heavily pregnant. |
| “I was scared, panicky, everything seemed to be going massively pear-shaped and I didn’t really understand why. I didn’t understand what I had done wrong.” | “I was scared, panicky, everything seemed to be going massively pear-shaped and I didn’t really understand why. I didn’t understand what I had done wrong.” |
| Cilliers said that after the fall, her husband did not visit her very often in the hospital where she had undergone major surgery for her leg and back injuries, and did not say that he loved her. | Cilliers said that after the fall, her husband did not visit her very often in the hospital where she had undergone major surgery for her leg and back injuries, and did not say that he loved her. |
| She said: “I said ‘I love you’ and he didn’t reply, which is harsh in that situation.” | She said: “I said ‘I love you’ and he didn’t reply, which is harsh in that situation.” |
| She added that following her discharge from hospital “I came home and just cried. We just sat in silence that night. I couldn’t stop crying.” | She added that following her discharge from hospital “I came home and just cried. We just sat in silence that night. I couldn’t stop crying.” |
| Emile Cilliers denies two counts of attempted murder and a third charge of damaging a gas valve, recklessly endangering life. | Emile Cilliers denies two counts of attempted murder and a third charge of damaging a gas valve, recklessly endangering life. |
| Victoria Cilliers said she had been in a relationship with the defendant for about six years, and married for about four years prior to the fall. | Victoria Cilliers said she had been in a relationship with the defendant for about six years, and married for about four years prior to the fall. |
| She said they had a post-nuptial agreement because she had bought their home in Amesbury, Wiltshire, using money she inherited from her grandmother. | She said they had a post-nuptial agreement because she had bought their home in Amesbury, Wiltshire, using money she inherited from her grandmother. |
| She said she had changed her will to remove Cilliers as a beneficiary because he was not good with money and she wanted to provide a secure financial situation for their children. | She said she had changed her will to remove Cilliers as a beneficiary because he was not good with money and she wanted to provide a secure financial situation for their children. |
| She also said she became concerned about his marital fidelity after she saw he was getting messages from women and received messages about a sex club “that pops up at different locations”. | She also said she became concerned about his marital fidelity after she saw he was getting messages from women and received messages about a sex club “that pops up at different locations”. |
| He would go out late at night to act as a “taxi service” for a friend “staying out late” and she had found condoms in the house and car, she said. | He would go out late at night to act as a “taxi service” for a friend “staying out late” and she had found condoms in the house and car, she said. |
| The trial was adjourned until Monday. | The trial was adjourned until Monday. |
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