A speck of gunpowder just one thousandth of a millimetre in size has provided substantial “evidence of guilt” against Barry George in the murder trial of TV presenter Jill Dando, a jury heard on Tuesday. The particle, found in George’s coat pocket, matches residue found on the victim.
“This aspect of the case provides compelling evidence of guilt,” prosecutor Orlando Pownall told the Old Bailey.
George, who is said to have a fascination with guns and celebrity, admitted he may have been wearing the blue cashmere coat in which the traces were found, on the day of the murder. “You will have to ask yourselves how this particle came to be in the defendant’s coat pocket,” Pownall told the jury.
When a gun is fired, a cloud of residue is emitted from the barrel and may be deposited on both the shooter and items nearby. Analysis of both the fragment found in George’s coat and those taken from Jill’s body contain barium, aluminium and a trace of lead. Particles can stay in an enclosed space indefinitely and are resistant even to dry-cleaning.
However, forensic experts could not rule out the possibility that the speck came from a firework or police contamination.
Forty-one-year-old George, a former BBC employee, denies shooting Jill. He claimed to never have been on Dando’s street and said he did not even know where it was. But eyewitnesses say they saw him both near the victim’s house on the day of the murder and walking away from the scene immediately afterwards.
Jill Dando died of a single bullet wound to the head on her front doorstep on April 26, 1999. The trial continues.
Photo: © Alphapress.com
Photo: © Alphapress.com
Photo: © Alphapress.com
