Salt Creek: Saliva DNA on backpacker’s body matched to accused – ABC Online

Updated March 21, 2017 16:19:17

Saliva from a man accused of sexually assaulting a Brazilian backpacker, and brutally attacking her friend at Salt Creek, was found on the woman's bikini bottoms and body, a forensic scientist has told the Supreme Court.

The 60-year-old South Australian man who cannot be identified is on trial for charges including aggravated kidnapping, indecent assault and attempted murder.

It is alleged the man sexually assaulted the Brazilian woman at a remote and isolated beach in the Coorong National Park in February 2016 then attacked her friend, a German backpacker who came to her aid.

Forensic scientist Duncan Taylor from Forensic Science SA, told the jury analysis of swabs taken from the Brazilian woman's breasts, neck and face as well as her bikini bottoms tested positive for saliva.

He said analysis showed the saliva matched the accused man's DNA at likelihood ratios in the billions and millions.

Dr Taylor agreed with several possible scenarios about how the saliva could have been transferred including licking, but also agreed when questioned by the defence that being in close proximity to someone in a confined space like a car could result in a DNA transfer.

He said it was not possible for him to determine how the DNA was deposited.

The last witness for the prosecution case was an electronic crime expert from SA Police, Detective Brevet Sergeant Jeremy Handley, who gave evidence of the analysis of the contents of the accused's iPhone and laptop.

He said there were 95 pornographic images found on the laptop including images depicting naked or semi-naked women with mouth gags and their hands and feet tied.

He also said phonographic videos were found on the man's phone as well as still images taken from those videos that depicted women wearing mouth gags and with their arms and legs bound.

The court heard internet search terms found on the man's computer included "women being brutally raped", "sex fetish", "brutal rape scenes of women" and "hardcore women being raped".

Dr Taylor also told the court blood found all over the accused's four-wheel-drive including the bonnet and roof matched the German woman's DNA at a likelihood ratio of greater than 100 billion.

The court heard "blood drops" or stains found on the accused's top and jeans also matched the German woman's DNA at the same likelihood ratio.

Dr Taylor said the man's shirt had many blood stains.

"It displayed heavy blood-like staining on the front of the shirt and more blood-like staining on the rear of the shirt," he said.

The court heard the German woman's DNA was also matched to blood stains on the handle of a shovel.

Prosecutor Jim Pearce QC has closed the prosecution case.

Defence lawyer Bill Boucaut SC said no witnesses would be called for the defence.

The trial will progress to closing addresses on Wednesday.

Topics: courts-and-trials, law-crime-and-justice, crime, sexual-offences, adelaide-5000, sa

First posted March 21, 2017 14:17:20

See the original post here:
Salt Creek: Saliva DNA on backpacker's body matched to accused - ABC Online