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A police escort for Rurik Jutting on the third day of his trial. Photo: Xiaomei Chen

Drugged up banker almost severed victim’s head, Hong Kong court told

Jury shown police tapes in which the Briton told officers how he sought sexual satisfaction by torturing people

Warning: the following article contains graphic descriptions of violence

British banker Rurik Jutting slashed the neck of one of his victims so deeply he cut through her vertebrae, leaving just a 6cm strip of skin intact, the High Court was told on Wednesday.

Jurors heard that 23-year-old Sumarti Ningsih suffered a gaping 24cm throat wound, with the muscle in front of her neck, larynx and a segment of her spine completely cut through.

Forensic pathologist Dr Poon Wai-ming said: “Skin is almost severed, not decapitated.”

The second victim, Seneng Mujiasih, 26, suffered multiple cuts between her neck and shoulder, and abrasions and reddish bruises were found on her left side.

Poon said both Indonesian women died due to cuts on their necks.

Jutting, 31, has denied two counts of murder.

On the third day of the trial, jurors were shown interviews that police taped after the Briton surrendered. The banker, under caution, told officers how he chose his “prey” and grew to like seeking sexual satisfaction by torturing people.

Poon said the defendant had used all his strength to cut Seneng’s throat, confirming what Jutting said in police interviews, while the woman had “put up a very active struggle”.

Toxicologist Dr Lau Fei-lung outside court on Wednesday. SCMP pictures
The multiple cuts on her fingers suggested defensive injuries inflicted while she was trying to grab a sharp weapon, the pathologist said, while the bruises on her shoulder indicated she could have been held tightly and forced to the floor.

There were also pin-point bleeding spots on her cheeks and temples, which Poon said suggested a certain degree of asphyxiation before death, possibly by strangling.

The decomposing body of the first victim, Sumarti, was found covered and tied in a suitcase in the flat.

Poon found a 1.5cm tear in her vagina, but there were no identifiable injuries to her vaginal wall or cervix.

Prosecutor John Reading said the tear could have occurred due to decomposition, but also from an act of penetration as he noted there was blood visible on Jutting’s fist in a video he filmed of the abuse. Poon agreed.

Toxicologist Dr Lau Fei-lung told the court that he believed Jutting had been under the influence of cocaine, with his self-made video clips showing a flushed face and dilated pupils.

“[Jutting] was a cocaine addict,” the expert concluded

In the video clips, a naked Jutting talked about the killings and his fantasies, which involved going back to the United Kingdom and kidnapping three teenage girls he would turn them into “sex slaves”.

Jutting called police on the morning of November 1 after the second killing.

Principal ambulance officer To Shing-fai testified that he found Jutting crying, talking aloud and acting edgy outside his flat, standing and sometimes sitting when he and his colleagues arrived at the scene.

Defence counsel Tim Owen QC said: “His condition made you think this man was the one who needed ambulance assistance.”

To agreed, adding: “I also asked [a] police officer at the scene whether this expatriate male was the injured one.”

The hearing continues before deputy High Court judge Mr Justice Michael Stuart-Moore.

This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: Victim’s neck was ‘slashed wide open’
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