The trial of Thomas Møller Olsen, a Greenlandic sailor who has been charged with the murder of 20 year old local girl Birna Brjánsdóttir on January 14 continued today with witness testimonies given in court. News of the trial have dominated Icelandic media, as the murder case has gripped the Icelandic nation.
Large quantities of blood
Police found large quantities of blood inside a car which Thomas Møller had rented. Footage from a security camera in downtown Reykjavík shows Birna entering the vehicle early morning January 14. Police believes Birna suffered a brutal and violent attack inside the vehicle, before her unconscious body was dumped into water on the south coast of Reykjanes peninsula. Her naked body was found on a rocky beach on January 22.
Analysis of the blood showed it all came from Birna. Birna's blood, as well as DNA from the defendant was also found on one of her shoelaces. A jacket which was recovered from Thomas' room onboard the trawler Polar Nanoq, where he was a crew member, also showed traces of Birna's blood.
Blood was also found on a jacket belonging to another crew member. The man had left the jacket in the car which Thomas was operating. Thomas washed the jacket before returning it to its owner. Thomas told the man he had been forced to wash the jacket after someone puked in it. He offered the same explanation for his cleaning of the vehicle. Despite having attempted to clean both the jacket and the vehicle police immediately noticed both were covered in blood.
Shocked at the quantity of blood
A forensic investigator with the police told the court he had been shocked at the quantity of blood inside the vehicle. Most of the blood splatters had been smeared by the attempts to clean the car, making it impossible for Police to fully reconstruct what happened inside the vehicle.
Police was able to determine that Birna had been hit at least twice after she started bleeding. The quantity of blood found inside the vehicle also pointed to a very violent assault. A large pool of blood had collected beneath one of the passenger seats in the back of the car. Birna's body showed she suffered a broken nose during the attack, as well as bruises and wounds over her body.
A foreign forensic expert who examined the body testified that the injuries on Birna's body suggested she had been beaten by fist numerous times.
A witness for the defence, a doctor who was to testify whether injuries Thomas had suffered to his shoulder, might make it impossible for him to carry out an attack like the one he is accused of, testified that his medical examination of Thomas showed that he was physically fit and that there was no reason to assume he was unable to carry out the attack.
Defendant's testimony contradictory and uncertain
Thomas was unable to explain either the blood which was found in the car and on his jacket, or his DNA on Birna's shoelace. His claim of having been forced to clean the car and clothing which had been left in the due to vomit was not born out by forensic study, as investigators were unable to find any traces of vomit in the car. Some of Thomas' clothing is also missing.
Thomas claimed that scratches which were found on his body and forearm, scratches which could indicate a struggle, were caused by himself during sleep. Doctors who investigated the scratches after Thomas was arrested on January 18 said they had been created 4-6 days earlier. Birna disappeared on January 14.
During yesterday's testimony Thomas offered a testimony which differed dramatically from his earlier testimony during interrogation by police. He claimed the reason he changed his testimony was that he had felt pressured by investigators. Detectives who testified in court today said that his initial testimony had been straight forward and without any hesitation – but only up to a point.
When questioned about events which took place after Police believes Birna was attacked and during the time police believes Thomas was disposing of her body, he became evasive. He seemed to remember only the things he wanted to remember, the detective remarked.
By changing his testimony Thomas attempted to shift blame to a second crew member, Nikolaj Olsen, who was with him in the car when Birna entered the car in downtown Reykjavík. Nikolaj testified that he was too drunk to remember anything that happened, and that had been too drunk to drive the car, as Thomas claims. Detectives who testified today said that no evidence supported Thomas' new version of events, and that there was nothing to suggest Nikolaj had been inside the vehicle when the attack took place.
The trial of Thomas Møller Olsen, a Greenlandic sailor who has been charged with the murder of 20 year old local girl Birna Brjánsdóttir on January 14 continued today with witness testimonies given in court. News of the trial have dominated Icelandic media, as the murder case has gripped the Icelandic nation.
Large quantities of blood
Police found large quantities of blood inside a car which Thomas Møller had rented. Footage from a security camera in downtown Reykjavík shows Birna entering the vehicle early morning January 14. Police believes Birna suffered a brutal and violent attack inside the vehicle, before her unconscious body was dumped into water on the south coast of Reykjanes peninsula. Her naked body was found on a rocky beach on January 22.
Analysis of the blood showed it all came from Birna. Birna's blood, as well as DNA from the defendant was also found on one of her shoelaces. A jacket which was recovered from Thomas' room onboard the trawler Polar Nanoq, where he was a crew member, also showed traces of Birna's blood.
Blood was also found on a jacket belonging to another crew member. The man had left the jacket in the car which Thomas was operating. Thomas washed the jacket before returning it to its owner. Thomas told the man he had been forced to wash the jacket after someone puked in it. He offered the same explanation for his cleaning of the vehicle. Despite having attempted to clean both the jacket and the vehicle police immediately noticed both were covered in blood.
Shocked at the quantity of blood
A forensic investigator with the police told the court he had been shocked at the quantity of blood inside the vehicle. Most of the blood splatters had been smeared by the attempts to clean the car, making it impossible for Police to fully reconstruct what happened inside the vehicle.
Police was able to determine that Birna had been hit at least twice after she started bleeding. The quantity of blood found inside the vehicle also pointed to a very violent assault. A large pool of blood had collected beneath one of the passenger seats in the back of the car. Birna's body showed she suffered a broken nose during the attack, as well as bruises and wounds over her body.
A foreign forensic expert who examined the body testified that the injuries on Birna's body suggested she had been beaten by fist numerous times.
A witness for the defence, a doctor who was to testify whether injuries Thomas had suffered to his shoulder, might make it impossible for him to carry out an attack like the one he is accused of, testified that his medical examination of Thomas showed that he was physically fit and that there was no reason to assume he was unable to carry out the attack.
Defendant's testimony contradictory and uncertain
Thomas was unable to explain either the blood which was found in the car and on his jacket, or his DNA on Birna's shoelace. His claim of having been forced to clean the car and clothing which had been left in the due to vomit was not born out by forensic study, as investigators were unable to find any traces of vomit in the car. Some of Thomas' clothing is also missing.
Thomas claimed that scratches which were found on his body and forearm, scratches which could indicate a struggle, were caused by himself during sleep. Doctors who investigated the scratches after Thomas was arrested on January 18 said they had been created 4-6 days earlier. Birna disappeared on January 14.
During yesterday's testimony Thomas offered a testimony which differed dramatically from his earlier testimony during interrogation by police. He claimed the reason he changed his testimony was that he had felt pressured by investigators. Detectives who testified in court today said that his initial testimony had been straight forward and without any hesitation – but only up to a point.
When questioned about events which took place after Police believes Birna was attacked and during the time police believes Thomas was disposing of her body, he became evasive. He seemed to remember only the things he wanted to remember, the detective remarked.
By changing his testimony Thomas attempted to shift blame to a second crew member, Nikolaj Olsen, who was with him in the car when Birna entered the car in downtown Reykjavík. Nikolaj testified that he was too drunk to remember anything that happened, and that had been too drunk to drive the car, as Thomas claims. Detectives who testified today said that no evidence supported Thomas' new version of events, and that there was nothing to suggest Nikolaj had been inside the vehicle when the attack took place.
