THE man accused of raping and murdering pregnant teenager Nikitta Grender took to the stand yesterday. Carl Whant was giving evidence on the 15th day of his trial at Newport Crown Court.

Crime reporter Ben Frampton reports.

MURDER accused Carl Whant had consensual sex with Nikitta Grender just hours before she died, but hid it from police to spare anyone embarrassment, he told a court yesterday.

Whant maintains his cousin, Ryan Mayes, invited him to have sex with his girlfriend when they arrived home from work on the evening of February 4, 2011, less than 12 hours before her body was found in her burned-out flat.

Whant, 27, is on trial accused of the rape and murder of 19-year-old Miss Grender on February 5 last year. He is also charged with the child destruction of her unborn baby, Kelsey- May, and arson. He denies all the charges.

Wearing a striped white shirt, black tie and a black zip-up top, Whant, of no fixed abode, took to the stand yesterday morning in front of a packed public gallery, filled with more than 30 friends and relatives of Miss Grender and Mr Mayes, as well as Whant’s family.

Speaking with a pronounced stutter, Whant struggled to give his age when asked by his defence barrister, Christopher Kinch QC, and the speech impediment was prominent throughout his evidence.

When he took to the stand, Mr Kinch asked him about his stutter and Whant said it was a problem he’d had as long as he could remember and would happen “as and when”. Whant would struggle to pronounce words beginning with r, f or s.

As soon as Whant took to the stand, Mr Kinch asked him directly if he raped and stabbed Miss Grender. He replied: “no, never” he also said no when asked if he started the fire at her Broadmead Park flat, or if he left with the knife which was used to stab Miss Grender.

With Miss Grender’s parents and Mr Mayes sitting just 20 feet away from the witness box, Whant said when he dropped Mr Mayes off at his flat after work on February 4, he went into the bedroom while Whant had a cigarette in the kitchen.

Whant said Mr Mayes shouted for him from the bedroom and when he opened the door, the couple were having sex and Mr Mayes asked if he “wanted to have a go.”

Whant told the jury that he and Miss Grender then had sex while Mr Mayes did the ironing in the kitchen before the two went out together. When talking about Miss Grender, he referred to her as ‘Kitta, the name used by her friends.

As reported previously in the Argus, Mr Mayes denied this ever happened and branded Whant a liar when he made a claim about having sex with Mr Mayes’ ex-girlfriend Laura McClaren in a similar scenario.

When Mr Mayes and Whant were out drinking in Newport that night, Whant told the court, he thought about what happened in the flat.

Whant said: “I thought it was a stupid thing to have done, but it just happened. I wish it hadn’t because I’ve got a fiancée and it wasn’t fair on her. It shouldn’t have happened.”

Mr Kinch asked him why he had not mentioned having sex with Miss Grender when interviewed by police. He replied: “I didn’t want to cause any embarrassment with anyone – Ryan, my girlfriend or me.”

Whant said he had known Miss Grender for about four years and when asked if he liked her, he replied “She’s all right.” He said Miss Grender was fine with him when they were together but heard from others that she wasn’t keen on him.

When asked if he was obsessed or infatuated with Miss Grender, he said “absolutely not.”

Proceeding.