‘He hid nothing’: Accused pilot’s phone data examined in trial

Résumé détaillé

Robert Crawford’s legal team are expected to call new witnesses to provide the jury with a second opinion about what defence claim was an accidental mower rollover.

Robert Crawford’s defence barrister has told a trial the accused pilot “hid nothing” in the police investigation, as forensic analysis of his phone revealed how the device was used in the hours surrounding his wife’s alleged murder.

Former Royal Australian Air Force pilot Robert Crawford, 49, has pleaded not guilty to the murder of his wife Frances, who was found at the bottom of a retaining wall along with a mower at their rural south-east Queensland property.

His defence team have told the jury that her death was a tragic accident, with Crawford claiming he believed his wife died while moving the ride-on mower late at night because the sprinklers were going to come on.

The trial has so far heard about a series of messages about moving the mower sent between the two Crawford phones on July 29, in the hours before Frances’ death.

On the prosecution case, some of those messages, including one at 11:21pm sent from Frances’ phone asking “Hey, are you going to move the mower soon?” were staged by Crawford. By this time Frances was likely dead, dying or unconscious, the prosecution claims.

Defence barrister Saul Holt, KC, told the jury in his opening address that 17 seconds after that message was sent, but before Crawford had read it, he was ringing a RAAF colleague to discuss a work issue on the airforce base.

“Right at that time Mr Crawford is on the phone before he’s even read the message that he’s apparently faked, having a conversation with [colleague] Jason McClure,” Holt said earlier.

On Friday, Queensland police investigative computer analyst Sean Dalton gave evidence regarding forensic data extraction of the two Crawford phones.

Dalton analysed usage on Crawford’s phone between 1.09am and 1.51am, and 2.35am to 3.20am. Dalton ran a series of tests using an Oppo phone, the same type as Crawford’s.

Début de l'article, extrait de Brisbane Times. Pour lire la suite, ouvrez l'article chez le média.