This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/england/8459214.stm
The article has changed 4 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 2 | Version 3 |
|---|---|
| Anatomy skill used to cut up man | Anatomy skill used to cut up man |
| (about 9 hours later) | |
| A salesman whose body parts were dumped across two counties was cut up by someone who "understood human anatomy", St Albans Crown Court has been told. | A salesman whose body parts were dumped across two counties was cut up by someone who "understood human anatomy", St Albans Crown Court has been told. |
| Pieces of Jeffrey Howe's body were found in Hertfordshire and Leicestershire last March and April. | Pieces of Jeffrey Howe's body were found in Hertfordshire and Leicestershire last March and April. |
| Stephen Marshall, 38, of Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, and Sarah Bush, 21, of Southgate, London, deny murdering 49-year-old Mr Howe in March 2009. | Stephen Marshall, 38, of Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, and Sarah Bush, 21, of Southgate, London, deny murdering 49-year-old Mr Howe in March 2009. |
| Professor Susan Black said whoever cut him up showed "attention to detail". | Professor Susan Black said whoever cut him up showed "attention to detail". |
| Removing certain body parts would have been "exceptionally difficult" for anyone without expertise, the forensic anthropologist said. | Removing certain body parts would have been "exceptionally difficult" for anyone without expertise, the forensic anthropologist said. |
| 'Skill shown' | 'Skill shown' |
| Prof Black, an expert on the examination of human remains, carried out one of the post-mortem examinations of Mr Howe's body. | Prof Black, an expert on the examination of human remains, carried out one of the post-mortem examinations of Mr Howe's body. |
| Giving evidence, she told that the skill displayed during the dismemberment was unlikely to have been acquired without practice. | Giving evidence, she told that the skill displayed during the dismemberment was unlikely to have been acquired without practice. |
| Asked about the way one of Mr Howe's legs was cut off, she said: "If one of my students had removed a leg in this way I would have been very pleased with them because it would have shown they understood human anatomy." | Asked about the way one of Mr Howe's legs was cut off, she said: "If one of my students had removed a leg in this way I would have been very pleased with them because it would have shown they understood human anatomy." |
| Marks found on Mr Howe's neck were likely to have been caused by a large and heavy kitchen knife or a cleaver, she told the court. | Marks found on Mr Howe's neck were likely to have been caused by a large and heavy kitchen knife or a cleaver, she told the court. |
| Earlier, Home Office pathologist Simon Poole said kitchen salesman Mr Howe had been stabbed in the back. | Earlier, Home Office pathologist Simon Poole said kitchen salesman Mr Howe had been stabbed in the back. |
| The jury has heard that Mr Howe was killed on 8 or 9 March in his flat in Southgate, north London. | The jury has heard that Mr Howe was killed on 8 or 9 March in his flat in Southgate, north London. |
| On Tuesday, Mr Marshall admitted dismembering Mr Howe and disposing of his body parts. | On Tuesday, Mr Marshall admitted dismembering Mr Howe and disposing of his body parts. |
| He also pleaded guilty to two counts of perverting the course of justice. | He also pleaded guilty to two counts of perverting the course of justice. |
| Surgical tools | Surgical tools |
| The first involved giving false information about the whereabouts of Mr Howe when police were conducting a missing person investigation. | The first involved giving false information about the whereabouts of Mr Howe when police were conducting a missing person investigation. |
| Secondly, he admitted dismembering the victim's body and disposing of the parts in different places to impede the investigation. | Secondly, he admitted dismembering the victim's body and disposing of the parts in different places to impede the investigation. |
| Ms Bush denies dismembering Mr Howe and disposing of his body parts. | Ms Bush denies dismembering Mr Howe and disposing of his body parts. |
| Mr Howe's remains were discovered by members of the public in various locations between 22 March and 11 April last year. | Mr Howe's remains were discovered by members of the public in various locations between 22 March and 11 April last year. |
| Mr Howe's torso, which was found in a green suitcase in a drainage ditch at Colliers End, Hertfordshire, on 11 April, bore marks that suggested an animal or insects had reached it, Mr Poole said. | Mr Howe's torso, which was found in a green suitcase in a drainage ditch at Colliers End, Hertfordshire, on 11 April, bore marks that suggested an animal or insects had reached it, Mr Poole said. |
| Other marks on the torso suggested it had started to decompose, he added. | Other marks on the torso suggested it had started to decompose, he added. |
| The trial continues. |