Encouraging signs in Groves murder case
THE 100th hearing of the Sarah Groves murder trial closed with some 'encouraging pointers for the future', her family has said, as they described the first day in a new court as 'bizarre'.
The case against Richard de Wit, who denies the offence, has moved to the the 2nd Additional Magistrates’ Court, under a new judge, Mr Tahir Khurshid Raina, and under a new Public Prosecutor, Mr Syed Mujeeb Andrabi.
Ahead of the hearing, Miss Groves' family, through their in-court representative, were able to meet with the judge in chambers.
Before proceedings commenced, Mr Andrabi announced he had to withdraw from the case after yesterday's hearing because he had a conflict of interest. In the early days of the trial, he had briefly assisted one of Richard de Wit’s legal representatives.
The new judge reversed a previous decision and de Wit is no longer allowed to represent himself - he will be represented by Ms Mahira Bhat.
Vic Groves said the hearing closed with some encouraging pointers.
'This was a bizarre first day in the new court. The judge, according to our in-court representative, is much tougher than the previous one and will not tolerate Richard de Wit’s antics. He seems determined to speed matters up by setting consecutive hearing dates.
'The imposed defence counsel also seems determined to process witnesses more quickly than has hitherto been the case. On the other hand, there is currently no prosecutor in post and key players do not seem to have a knowledge and grasp of the case to date.'
The next trial dates are Monday 18 September and Tuesday 19 September.
