16/09/2008

Trio In Court Over Meredith Kercher Murder

A hearing is taking place in the Italian town of Perugia to decide if the three suspects accused of the murder of Leeds University student Meredith Kercher should face trail.

American Amanda Knox, 21, her former Italian boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito, 24, and Rudy Hermann Guede, 21, originally from the Ivory Coast, all deny sexual assault and murder.

Miss Kercher, 21, from Coulsdon, south London, was found semi-naked with her throat slit at the home she shared with Knox and others on Via Della Pergola on November 1, 2007.

Miss Knox and Mr Sollecito have been in jail since November, Mr Guede was arrested later in Germany and extradited to Italy in December.

Mr Sollecito was not in court for the hearing.

Miss Kercher's parents entered the court without making any comment to the waiting media.

Cleared suspect Diya "Patrick" Lumumba arrived in court, his lawyer said he would be joining the case as a "civil plaintiff".

Mr Lumumba is suing Knox for falsely implicating him in Miss Kercher's murder.

Speaking ahead of the hearing the father of Miss Knox told ITV's Tonight programme he hoped his daughter would be freed by the court.

(GK/JM)

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30 November 2007
Meredith Suspects Appear In Court
Two suspects in the murder of British student Meredith Kercher are in court in Italy to launch an appeal against their continued detention. Amanda Knox, 20, and Raffaele Sollecito, 23, have been held since November 6, five days after Miss Kercher was found dead in the apartment she shared with Miss Knox in Perugia.
07 November 2007
Three Still Held Over Meredith Murder
Italian police are continuing to question three people in connection with the death of British student Meredith Kercher. Amanda Knox, a 20-year-old American student who was also Meredith's room-mate, her 24-year-old Italian boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito and 37-year-old Congolese man Patrick Diya Lumumba were all arrested on Tuesday.
04 October 2011
Knox Freed Over Dodgy DNA Evidence
Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito have been cleared of the murder of Meredith Kercher. Miss Knox and her former boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito were freed from prison last night after spending four years behind bars following their conviction for British Meredith's murder.
16 January 2009
Meredith Kercher Murder Trial Begins
The trial of two people accused of murdering British Meredith Kercher is opening today in Italy. Italian Raffaele Sollecito, 24, and American Amanda Knox, 21, appeared in front of an eight-member jury in a courthouse in the university town of Perugia.
04 December 2007
Meredith Murder Suspect To Be Extradited
A man suspected of involvement in the murder of British student Meredith Kercher in Italy is to be extradited from Germany, it has been announced. Ivory Coast national Rudy Hermann Guede, 20, was arrested in Germany on November 20, one day after an international arrest warrant was issued for him.