'Not possible to say' what caused bruises on former Boston woman allegedly murdered, jury told

The jury in the trial of a West Bromwich man accused of murdering a former Lincolnshire woman has been told it was not possible to say what caused bruises found on her head.

The body of Shara Millar - a sex worker - was found in Woodburn Road in Smethwick shortly after 6.10am on August 11 last year. Delivery driver Tanveer Singh, aged 31, of Leopard Lane, West Bromwich, is accused of her murder.

Giving evidence for the prosecution yesterday (May 7), Home Office forensics pathologist Dr Charlotte Randall told Wolverhampton Crown Court that interference with a person’s blood flow can result in them becoming unconscious.

“Unconsciousness can happen within a matter of minutes. If pressure is sustained for a few minutes it would be sufficient to cause death. Consciousness may be regained if pressure is released within that period. It is not possible to indicate the degree of force used,” Dr Randall said.

“There were bruises to the left-hand side of the face, under the surface of the scalp, bruises to the right-hand side of the head in keeping with blunt force trauma. It has not been possible to say how these or any other injuries were sustained.

“It may have been as a result of blows or forceful contact with an object or an unyielding surface. There were no obvious brain injuries.

“Those blows may have rendered her unconscious.”

The jury also heard that bruises to the tip of the deceased’s tongue and in her mouth may have been caused by a blow or tension to the teeth.

The jurors were previously told that Miss Millar, originally from Boston, had been strangled to death and her injuries included a number of neck fractures, and bruises ‘consistent with blunt force trauma or impact with a hard surface’.

They were also told that Miss Millar, who was described as having a ‘chaotic lifestyle’ due to being a drug addict, had traces of heroine and cocaine in her system when she died.

Prosecutor Rachel Brand KC said much of the case was not in dispute and that some of the evidence would take the form of CCTV, photographs, body maps and witness statements.

Singh claims Ms Millar agreed to let him strangle her, but he did not mean to kill her or cause her serious harm. The court has also heard that the defendant had been on a night out with a friend in the hours leading up to the alleged incident.

Singh had dropped the person off in Soho Road before picking up the sex worker in Babington Road on the Handsworth-Smethwick boundary, then drove to the industrial estate in Woodburn Road arriving shortly before 1am.

Miss Millar, who was 41, was found on the pavement by a worker arriving at nearby industrial units.

Singh denies murder. The trial continues.