Neighbours made grim discovery after spotting man with suitcase, murder trial told
26.07.2022 - 16:01
/ manchestereveningnews.co.uk
Neighbours of a man accused of murder made a grim discovery after getting suspicious when they spotted him with a suitcase, a court has heard. Thomas Nutt, 45, has admitted killing his new wife Dawn Walker but denies murdering her.
Prosecutors told a jury at Bradford Crown Court that Mr Nutt killed Dawn after their wedding reception on October 27 last year, before dumping her body and pretending to go on holiday to Skegness with her. Dawn's body was found packed inside a suitcase close to the couple's home in Lightcliffe, near Halifax, Yorkshire, on October 31 after neighbours became suspicious of Mr Nutt, Yorkshire Live reports.
On Monday, July 25, jurors were shown CCTV footage of Mr Nutt wheeling a large suitcase out of the back of his house and into nearby bushes just as a police officer arrives at his front door to follow up the defendant’s missing person report.
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The trial heard that Dawn was last seen alive on the night of her wedding by the taxi driver who dropped the couple off after the reception. Alistair MacDonald QC, prosecuting, told the court that Mr Nutt seemingly returned from holiday on October 30, and began decorating the couple's home for Halloween.
The next day, he reported Dawn missing after she failed to meet with her daughter, the court heard. Alistair MacDonald QC, prosecuting, told the court that a neighbour noticed Mr Nutt was a "bit panicky" as he was with Dawn's daughter and grandson, and the neighbour told the defendant "not to worry as he was only talking about Dawn having been away only for an hour and she was probably busy."
The prosecutor said: "He even had a joke, which, in the