Yeates Killer 'Had Body In Boot On Asda Trip'

Vincent Tabak killed Joanna Yeates and then drove to Asda to buy beer with her body in the boot of his car, a court has heard.

Bristol Crown Court was played footage of Tabak, 33, at the supermarket in Bedminster on the night the landscape architect was killed.

The jury was told the engineer texted his girlfriend Tanja Morson at 9.25pm, after the killing, saying: "Missing you loads, it's boring here without you. Vxx."

He then drove to Asda in his Renault Megane, where he entered the store twice and bought beer, crisps and rock salt - which can be used to melt snow.

At 10.30pm, he sent another text to his girlfriend, saying: "how are you i'm at the asda buying some crisis [crisps], was bored, can't wait to pick you up."

The Dutchman then disappeared from cameras for 45 minutes, which is when the prosecution alleges he dumped Miss Yeates' body in a remote country lane.

Prosecutors said he may have tried to push her remains over a wall into a quarry but eventually just left the body on the side of the road, covered in leaves.

Tabak has admitted manslaughter but denies murdering the 25-year-old, who had lived in the same block of flats as him in Clifton, Bristol.

She was strangled on December 17 last year after returning home alone from drinks with work colleagues while her boyfriend Greg Reardon was out of town.

The architect was killed minutes after arriving at her ground-floor flat, which adjoined the apartment where Tabak lived.

The jury has been told he admits killing Miss Yeates but that they must decide whether it was murder rather than manslaughter.

Her parents David and Teresa watched as Nigel Lickley QC said Tabak had held their daughter's neck long enough to "squeeze the life out of her".

The prosecutor said: "There is no doubt and neither is it in dispute as to how that young woman died. Vincent Tabak strangled her with his hand or hands.

"He held her throat hard enough and for long enough to kill her. He was in complete control and knew what he was doing.

"At the same time, he knew Joanna Yeates was resisting and fighting for her life."

Tabak, wearing a dark suit, grey shirt and blue tie, referred to a file of notes at his side as he sat in the dock.

The court heard he was around a foot taller than Miss Yeates and stronger, so was able to overwhelm her.

Prosecutors said the trilingual engineer had pretended to be a "concerned and worried neighbour" after the killing, fooling his girlfriend among others.

He carried on with life as normal and even discussed the case with friends at a dinner party.

Mr Lickley said that, as Miss Yeates' boyfriend sat worrying in one flat, Tabak was on the other side of the wall searching the internet.

The prosecution said he looked for maps of Longwood Lane, where Miss Yeates was found, as well as researching body decomposition and bin collections.

Tabak was also said to have repeatedly checked the Avon and Somerset Police website, at times hourly, for updates on their investigation.

Mr Lickley said: "He looked up information on body decomposition, no doubt hoping nothing would remain of his victim.

"He looked up information on the sentences for murder and manslaughter and constantly searched the Avon and Somerset Police website for information about the case."

Miss Yeates had lunch with her boyfriend on the day she died before he left to visit family in Sheffield.

She went to drinks with work colleagues that night but told friends she felt "lost without Greg" and left at around 8.20pm.

CCTV footage showing her walking home from the pub was shown to the court, bringing her mother to tears.

She was last seen on camera at 8.33pm. By 8.49pm, neighbours heard screams coming from her flat.

The prosecution said a loud scream was followed by a second "muffled" scream and then a thud or bump.

Prosecutors said Tabak took the pizza and box Miss Yeates had bought earlier, as well as one of her socks.

The reason for their removal is not known and the box has never been found.

Miss Yeates was reported missing two days later when her boyfriend returned home and found she had vanished.

Police first spoke to Tabak in the early hours of December 20, as part of their inquiries at the block of flats.

By then, he had already dumped the victim's body at Longwood Lane, a quiet country lane three miles away.

Before Mr Reardon had reported his girlfriend missing, Tabak had searched for the spot using Google Maps, the court heard.

Mr Lickley said: "It is a striking feature of this case that, as one young man became more and more worried about his missing girlfriend, there, on the other side of the common wall, was her killer."

The architect's body was not found until Christmas morning, when it was discovered on a snowy verge in Failand, north Somerset, by a dog walker.

Mr Lickley told the court the Dutchman had searched information on rubbish collections after police said they were looking for the pizza carton.

"Why? Because we suggest he had thrown away things that might incriminate him," he said.

The prosecution said Tabak searched the web for details of missing people and local murders before an appeal over Miss Yeates was made.

He later emailed his girlfriend to say "let's hope she is discovered healthy and well" and "at least there is not sign of foul play, that's a slight relief".

On December 21, he looked up the sentences for manslaughter on his work computer, the court heard.

The jury also heard that when police told the Dutchman they could link him to the body, he accused forensic officers of "forgery and taking bribes".

Neither Miss Yeates nor her boyfriend had ever spoken to the Dutchman before her death.

The trial continues.