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| April Jones jury takes field trip to scenes connected with case | April Jones jury takes field trip to scenes connected with case |
| (10 days later) | |
| The jury in the April Jones murder trial has visited key scenes connected to the case including the former home of Mark Bridger, the man accused of abducting and murdering the five-year-old girl. | The jury in the April Jones murder trial has visited key scenes connected to the case including the former home of Mark Bridger, the man accused of abducting and murdering the five-year-old girl. |
| Members of the panel – together with the judge, barristers and court staff – decamped for the day from Mold crown court to the market town of Machynlleth, in mid Wales. | Members of the panel – together with the judge, barristers and court staff – decamped for the day from Mold crown court to the market town of Machynlleth, in mid Wales. |
| Their first stop just before noon on Thursday was the junior school April attended. Bridger took part in a parents' evening for his own daughter there shortly before April vanished in October last year. The nine men and three women briefly got off the coach but did not go into the school. | Their first stop just before noon on Thursday was the junior school April attended. Bridger took part in a parents' evening for his own daughter there shortly before April vanished in October last year. The nine men and three women briefly got off the coach but did not go into the school. |
| They were then driven into the nearby Bryn-Y-Gog estate, from where the little girl disappeared as she played on her bicycle and where her parents, Paul and Coral, live. | They were then driven into the nearby Bryn-Y-Gog estate, from where the little girl disappeared as she played on her bicycle and where her parents, Paul and Coral, live. |
| Bridger, a 47-year-old former abattoir worker and labourer, claims he accidentally knocked April over in his Land Rover, panicked and drove the dying girl away. When he was arrested he told police that he had forgotten where he left April's body. | Bridger, a 47-year-old former abattoir worker and labourer, claims he accidentally knocked April over in his Land Rover, panicked and drove the dying girl away. When he was arrested he told police that he had forgotten where he left April's body. |
| The prosecution alleges he abducted and murdered April before disposing of, concealing or destroying her body, which has never been found. It claims he was interested in graphic child abuse images and child murder cases and alleges that his motive in snatching April was a sexual one. | The prosecution alleges he abducted and murdered April before disposing of, concealing or destroying her body, which has never been found. It claims he was interested in graphic child abuse images and child murder cases and alleges that his motive in snatching April was a sexual one. |
| From Bryn-Y-Gog the jury bus, accompanied by police outriders, was driven along what Bridger described as the mountain road to the town's war memorial. | From Bryn-Y-Gog the jury bus, accompanied by police outriders, was driven along what Bridger described as the mountain road to the town's war memorial. |
| The jury was then shown the town centre, including the clock tower and bank – the location of CCTV cameras that police used to build up a picture of Bridger's movements. Pink ribbons – a show of solidarity with April's parents – were dotted around the town. Some shops still have missing posters. | The jury was then shown the town centre, including the clock tower and bank – the location of CCTV cameras that police used to build up a picture of Bridger's movements. Pink ribbons – a show of solidarity with April's parents – were dotted around the town. Some shops still have missing posters. |
| They were then driven to the leisure centre, where cameras had caught April during a trip to the swimming pool. The jury has been shown footage showing a happy-looking April being swung by her half-sister on the afternoon she disappeared. | They were then driven to the leisure centre, where cameras had caught April during a trip to the swimming pool. The jury has been shown footage showing a happy-looking April being swung by her half-sister on the afternoon she disappeared. |
| From there the jury was driven past Tuffins garage. An employee there allegedly saw Bridger driving quickly minutes after the time the prosecution says April was abducted. | From there the jury was driven past Tuffins garage. An employee there allegedly saw Bridger driving quickly minutes after the time the prosecution says April was abducted. |
| The itinerary for the rest of the day included the car repair yard where Bridger's Land Rover was found and the spot on the main road where he was arrested the day after April disappeared. Also, the village of Ceinws, three miles from Machynlleth, where Bridger lived in a house called Mount Pleasant. | The itinerary for the rest of the day included the car repair yard where Bridger's Land Rover was found and the spot on the main road where he was arrested the day after April disappeared. Also, the village of Ceinws, three miles from Machynlleth, where Bridger lived in a house called Mount Pleasant. |
| The prosecution alleges that April came to harm at the cottage rather than at the estate or in Bridger's car. Her blood stains were found in the lounge, hallway and bathroom and charred fragments of what experts say are probably a young human skull were found in the ash in the grate. | The prosecution alleges that April came to harm at the cottage rather than at the estate or in Bridger's car. Her blood stains were found in the lounge, hallway and bathroom and charred fragments of what experts say are probably a young human skull were found in the ash in the grate. |
| Elwen Evans QC said on Wednesday: "What happened to April there? She lay bleeding in front of the fire in the defendant's living room. One person knows and he is not prepared to say." Members of the jury are to go into the house in small groups because it is so tiny. | Elwen Evans QC said on Wednesday: "What happened to April there? She lay bleeding in front of the fire in the defendant's living room. One person knows and he is not prepared to say." Members of the jury are to go into the house in small groups because it is so tiny. |
| The final planned visit of the day is to a spot close to a river where Bridger was allegedly spotted the day after April's disappearance with a black plastic bin bag. | The final planned visit of the day is to a spot close to a river where Bridger was allegedly spotted the day after April's disappearance with a black plastic bin bag. |
| Before the visit, the jury had been told that the court was in effect moving en masse to mid Wales. The judge had told them: "There is considerable media interest in this case and it is inevitable there will be media in and around Machynlleth." But he said the media had been warned not to photograph or film the jurors so they could not be identified. | Before the visit, the jury had been told that the court was in effect moving en masse to mid Wales. The judge had told them: "There is considerable media interest in this case and it is inevitable there will be media in and around Machynlleth." But he said the media had been warned not to photograph or film the jurors so they could not be identified. |
| He asked the panel to appoint a foreman or forewoman who would be the contact point with him. After a break for lunch – they had been told to bring their own sandwiches – the jury headed 60 miles back to Mold, where the trial will resume on Friday. | He asked the panel to appoint a foreman or forewoman who would be the contact point with him. After a break for lunch – they had been told to bring their own sandwiches – the jury headed 60 miles back to Mold, where the trial will resume on Friday. |
| Bridger denies abduction, murder and intending to pervert the course of justice by disposing of, concealing or destroying April's body. | Bridger denies abduction, murder and intending to pervert the course of justice by disposing of, concealing or destroying April's body. |
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