Clowne murder trial continues

Alexander Burnett, from Westlea View, is charged with the murder of mum-of-three Lee Hendry on 13th September 2011 after seeing a new photo of his former flame on Facebook.

He denies the charge.

Nottingham Crown Court heard how Burnett and Ms Hendry, of Princess Street, Brimington, had briefly lived together about 12 years ago but parted in November 2000.

The pair exchanged a series of text messages and phone calls before she travelled by bus to meet him at Boughton Lane, Clowne, on the evening of Monday 12th September.

Peter Joyce QC, prosecuting, told the court they went back to the defendant’s home and had sex while one of Burnett’s friends sat downstairs watching television.

During the evening it is claimed Burnett and Ms Hendry had a play fight downstairs in the front room where the deceased’s arm was hurt.

Burnett’s friend, who can’t be named for legal reasons, told police in interview he moved a table so that no-one would get hurt.

“Alex said to me ‘I will take you to the floor’. I said ‘you will try’ and he said ‘I will get you down because I will slit your throat and then put you down’,” the teenager said.

“I felt that he meant it.”

His friend went to bed in another room just before 7am and was awoken around 1pm later that day, the court heard.

He added: “I got woke up by Alex standing in the corner of the bedroom with blood around his mouth.”

“He asked me ‘would you like a coffee?’”

“He was sat downstairs watching Two and a Half Men with a cup of coffee like nothing had happened.”

He was told Ms Hendry had left but spotted her glasses and mobile phone in the lounge, it is claimed. He was then told to leave.

Later that day at around 8.10pm, Mr Joyce said Burnett handed himself into Chesterfield Police Station.

Officers arrived at the address at 8.35pm to find Ms Hendry on the floor of Burnett’s bedroom.

“It maybe that the defence is going to say that is was an accident of sexual play,” said Mr Joyce.

“The prosecution case is quite simply this: the bruising around her neck may well have rendered her unconscious. A knife in the neck that deep, that hard, that far is not sexual play.”

Burnett denies the charge of murder. The trial continues.