NIKITTA TRIAL DAY 3: Follow our live blog

9:42am Monday 23rd January 2012 in Nikitta trial live Photograph of the Author By Natalie Crockett

NIKITTA TRIAL DAY 3: Follow our live blog NIKITTA TRIAL DAY 3: Follow our live blog

FOLLOW our live blog of the Nikitta Grender trial with our reporters sending updates from court.

Pregnant teenager Nikitta Grender was found dead at her Lliswerry home after a fire in February last year.

Carl Whant, 27, of no fixed address, stands accused of the rape and murder of Miss Grender on February 5 last year. He is also accused of arson and child destruction. He denies all the charges.

NIKITTA TRIAL UPDATES

#nikitta murder trial finished for today. Will continue tomorrow at 10.30am Mon Jan 23 16:15:39 +0000 2012
The time it took smoke to reach the alarm would depend on how much, and at what speed, smoke escaped the room, jury told #nikitta Mon Jan 23 16:15:35 +0000 2012
Flanagan: it's impossible to give a precise time for when the fire started #nikitta Mon Jan 23 16:11:21 +0000 2012
Flanagan: would estimate it was started some time between 4.30am and 5.30am #nikitta Mon Jan 23 16:02:48 +0000 2012
Flanagan: if the smoke alarm sounded at 5.30am it is fair to say the fire was started before then #nikitta Mon Jan 23 16:01:59 +0000 2012
Flanagan: it's unlikely fire was started with a match as it would be difficult for the fire to take before it burnt out #nikitta Mon Jan 23 15:53:30 +0000 2012
Flanagan: in the absence something like a candle being found, it is concluded the fire was started deliberately by a person #nikitta Mon Jan 23 15:52:23 +0000 2012
Flanagan: the air coming in from the gap in the door would 'feed' and sustain a slow burning fire #nikitta Mon Jan 23 15:49:08 +0000 2012
Flanagan: the remains of a textile on top of the door indicates something was hung over it, stopping it from closing completely #nikitta Mon Jan 23 15:45:19 +0000 2012
Flanagan: at some point during the fire the door was open because of fire damage visible on the outside of the door #nikitta Mon Jan 23 15:42:38 +0000 2012
Flanagan: believe the door was closed for most of the fire because of visible heat damage #nikitta Mon Jan 23 15:37:31 +0000 2012
Flanagan: at least two areas of the bed were set on fire, including the foot of the bed #nikitta Mon Jan 23 15:35:56 +0000 2012
Flanagan: one place was the right side of the headboard #nikitta Mon Jan 23 15:33:30 +0000 2012
Flanagan: in my opinion the fire started in more than one place #nikitta Mon Jan 23 15:29:32 +0000 2012
Flanagan: the inside of furniture in the bedroom remained untouched indicating it was a slow burning fire #nikitta Mon Jan 23 15:28:24 +0000 2012
Flanagan: there were a lot of textiles around #nikitta's face and head Mon Jan 23 15:17:44 +0000 2012
Flanagan: the remains of textiles were found on the burnt bed #nikitta Mon Jan 23 15:15:20 +0000 2012
Flanagan: bedroom windows cracked because of the heat from the fire #nikitta Mon Jan 23 15:10:37 +0000 2012
Flanagan: there were no obvious signs that an accelerant was used #nikitta Mon Jan 23 15:06:03 +0000 2012
Flanagan: investigation took all day, searched every square inch of the room #nikitta Mon Jan 23 15:03:59 +0000 2012
Flanagan: knowing how #nikitta died we were looking for a knife and a lighter, or anything else that could have started a fire Mon Jan 23 15:03:02 +0000 2012
Flanagan: quite satisfied fire was not started by an electrical fault with the television in the bedroom #nikitta Mon Jan 23 15:00:16 +0000 2012
Flanagan: fire originated in #nikitta's bedroom. Fire investigation team began excavating the room Mon Jan 23 14:58:57 +0000 2012
#nikitta's body was remove by a pathologist and taken to the University of Wales Hospital, Cardiff, court told Mon Jan 23 14:57:34 +0000 2012
Flanagan: initial opinion was that the fire had started on the bed and radiated out #nikitta Mon Jan 23 14:55:55 +0000 2012
Flanagan: #nikitta's body was on the bed, he instructed fire team that nothing should be touched Mon Jan 23 14:55:11 +0000 2012
Flanagan: something there was 'bothering me' but couldn't tell what it was #nikitta Mon Jan 23 14:54:25 +0000 2012
Flanagan: attended #nikitta's flat at 9.07am on Feb 5. Put firefighting kit on and was taken to #nikitta's body Mon Jan 23 14:53:45 +0000 2012
He is the head of South Wales Fire And Rescue Service's fire investigation team #nikitta Mon Jan 23 14:50:03 +0000 2012
Next pros witness is fire investigator Michael Flanagan #nikitta Mon Jan 23 14:46:45 +0000 2012
Fish says this is mostly likely down to clocks at the scene and in the control room being out of sync #nikitta Mon Jan 23 14:32:12 +0000 2012
Defence barrister Christopher Kinch QC questions Fish on time discrepancies recorded by officers in site and in the control room #nikitta Mon Jan 23 14:31:06 +0000 2012
Fish: informed police officers and a paramedic at the scene there had been a fatality #nikitta Mon Jan 23 14:27:08 +0000 2012
Fire station watch manager Andrew Fish continues to give evidence #nikitta Mon Jan 23 14:21:22 +0000 2012
#nikitta murder trial resumes Mon Jan 23 14:13:37 +0000 2012
#nikitta murder trial adjourned for lunch, to resume at 2.05pm Mon Jan 23 13:03:40 +0000 2012
Fish: requested fire investigation team after #nikitta's body was discovered by team using breathing apparatus Mon Jan 23 12:46:31 +0000 2012
Fish: #nikitta's body was found at 8.08am Mon Jan 23 12:44:12 +0000 2012
Fish: smoke billowed down the stairs and out of the flat door which suggested a 'significant' and 'developing' fire #nikitta Mon Jan 23 12:39:27 +0000 2012
Fish: called for a third fire crew when flames became visible through the window of the main bedroom #nikitta Mon Jan 23 12:36:49 +0000 2012
Fish: believed there was people in the flat, ambulance was automatically called for #nikitta Mon Jan 23 12:30:15 +0000 2012
Fish: On arrival at #nikitta's flat could see smoke coming from the top of the windows Mon Jan 23 12:28:14 +0000 2012
Next pros witness is Maindee fire station watch manager Andrew Fish #nikitta Mon Jan 23 12:19:08 +0000 2012
Jones: second team from Maindee fire station who searched the main bedroom indicated they had found a body #nikitta Mon Jan 23 12:13:21 +0000 2012
Jones: heard a bang and saw flames coming from behind us. Maindee firefighters tackled the fire #nikitta Mon Jan 23 12:11:56 +0000 2012
Jones: went in to #nikitta's flat searching for possible casualties Mon Jan 23 12:06:46 +0000 2012
He is stationed at Malpas fire station and attended the fire at #nikitta's flat on Feb 5 Mon Jan 23 12:05:37 +0000 2012
Next pros witness is firefighter Ben Lewis Jones #nikitta Mon Jan 23 12:02:47 +0000 2012
Voisey: it looked like the firemen who attended tried the door handle to #nikitta's flat but can't be sure if they did or didn't Mon Jan 23 12:02:05 +0000 2012
Voisey: #nikitta had a dog. Often heard it barking and running around upstairs but heard nothing from it that night Mon Jan 23 11:58:45 +0000 2012
Voisey: when she went outside before she rang 999, she could smell smoke mixed with the smell of cannabis #nikitta Mon Jan 23 11:51:41 +0000 2012
Voisey: 'beeping' of alarm which woke her sounded faint and she couldn't work out what it was #nikitta Mon Jan 23 11:49:27 +0000 2012
Voisey: didn't get to sleep until around 4am the following morning as baby kept her up. Heard no noises coming from upstairs #nikitta Mon Jan 23 11:46:19 +0000 2012
Voisey: her sister who dropped her off heard thumping sounds coming from upstairs - sounded like footsteps #nikitta Mon Jan 23 11:43:27 +0000 2012
Voisey: the night before the fire she went to her mum's house and returned to her flat around 9.30pm #nikitta Mon Jan 23 11:41:49 +0000 2012
Voisey: fire crews arrived and broke the door to #nikitta's flat down Mon Jan 23 11:37:32 +0000 2012
Voisey: banged on #nikitta's door for around 10 minutes until her knuckles were red. There was no answer Mon Jan 23 11:36:38 +0000 2012
Voisey: 999 call handler told her to get out of the flat and alert neighbours. When outside she noticed smoke coming from upstairs #nikitta Mon Jan 23 11:35:24 +0000 2012
Voisey: Returned to her own flat, which now felt hot. She rang fire brigade at 7.50am and her own smoke alarm started #nikitta Mon Jan 23 11:32:56 +0000 2012
Voisey: walked outside around the back of the building to see if she could see a fire, but did not look up to #nikitta's flat above Mon Jan 23 11:30:55 +0000 2012
Voisey: when she changed her daughter's nappy and put it outside the flat she smelled smoke #nikitta Mon Jan 23 11:29:37 +0000 2012
Voisey: assumed the noise was coming from flat upstairs and they would deal with it #nikitta Mon Jan 23 11:28:26 +0000 2012
Voisey: went back to bed until daughter woke up again at 6.30am. The alarm was still going off #nikitta Mon Jan 23 11:27:38 +0000 2012
Voisey: that was around 5.30am when she had just got her 5 month old daughter to sleep #nikitta Mon Jan 23 11:26:33 +0000 2012
Voisey: was woken by the beeping of an alarm, couldn't find anything in her flat so ignored it #nikitta Mon Jan 23 11:25:49 +0000 2012
Voisey: was in bed when the smoke alarm in #nikitta's flat went off Mon Jan 23 11:21:12 +0000 2012
Miss Voisey lives in the flat below #nikitta's Mon Jan 23 11:19:17 +0000 2012
Next pros witness is #nikitta's neighbour Sarah Voisey who will give evidence via video link # Mon Jan 23 11:03:09 +0000 2012
Sinnot: the alarm is quite sensitive and wouldn't need much smoke to trigger it, but how fast depends on how quick it travels #nikitta Mon Jan 23 11:02:06 +0000 2012
Sinnot: the alarm will sound between 4 and 14 seconds after smoke first enters it #nikitta Mon Jan 23 10:52:02 +0000 2012
Sinnot: it is triggered when a certain level of smoke is detected inside the alarm #nikitta Mon Jan 23 10:50:16 +0000 2012
Sinnot: the fire alarm in #nikitta's flat was made by his company Mon Jan 23 10:48:16 +0000 2012
His company manufactures smoke alarms which are used by local authorities #nikitta Mon Jan 23 10:44:27 +0000 2012
First pros witness today is John Sinnot #nikitta Mon Jan 23 10:42:10 +0000 2012
Mr Justice Griffiths Williams tells jury they will visit #nikitta's Broadmead Park flat on Wednesday Mon Jan 23 10:41:18 +0000 2012
Carl Whant, 27, who denies rape, murder, child destruction and arson has taken his place in the dock #nikitta Mon Jan 23 10:39:36 +0000 2012
Waiting for #nikitta murder trial to resume. Expecting evidence from more firefighters and the neighbour who raised the alarm today Mon Jan 23 10:34:03 +0000 2012
RT @ArgusBFrampton: At the #nikitta trial today with @ArgusNCrockett - follow her for live coverage from 10.30am Mon Jan 23 09:02:18 +0000 2012

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