Aussie Mum and Boyfriend Face Court Over Death of Police Officer

Sara Connor, the woman charged over the death of a police officer in Bali in August has insisted that she is innocent on the first day of her trial.

After nearly three months in custody, Ms Connor, 45, from Byron Bay in northern New South Wales, and her British boyfriend David Taylor, 34, will face separate trials in the same court house in Denpasar, over the alleged murder of Balinese police officer Wayan Sudarasa.

The pair arrived handcuffed together before being taken into separate holding cells. They were calm throughout the proceedings during which the court heard the charges against them, including murder, assault causing death and group assault.

Prosecutors argued both suspects were involved in the murder, but Ms Connor’s defence lawyers said she was trying to separate her boyfriend from Mr Sudarasa, 53, during a scuffle on the beach, after they accused the officer of stealing Ms Connor’s handbag.

The prosecution told the court that during the scuffle, Mr Sudarasa pressed down on Mr Taylor’s neck, almost suffocating him and so Mr Taylor reached for a beer bottle and struck Mr Sudarasa in the head, and using the broken beer bottle, Mr Taylor hit the victim in the head for a second time.

The prosecutors said the officer died from forced trauma to the head, which caused the brain to swell that led to a lack of oxygen.

Prosecutors also pointed out what the pair went to in covering up the crime, including burning their clothes and throwing away the officer’s mobile phone and wallet.

However, lawyers for Ms Connor said she should only be charged with destroying evidence “” for cutting up the cards that were in the police officer’s wallet “” that carries a maximum nine-month prison sentence.

Ms Connor and Mr Taylor may face 15 years in jail if found guilty.

A panel of three judges will preside over the trial that is expected to last months.

Source: Abc.net.au