woman accused of killing her partner’s ageing father
Bloody footprints, toothlessness, a wardrobe change, and a lie.
These are some of the indicators that, according to the prosecution, connect a Melbourne woman to the death of her partner’s elderly father.
Kon Kritikos was allegedly fatally assaulted by Danielle Lee Birchall, 48, as he was home alone in Melbourne’s north.
On November 11, 2020, the 87-year-old man was discovered heavily battered on the floor of his Coburg residence by his son George and Birchall.
He was rushed to the hospital, but around two weeks later, he passed away from his wounds.
A jury of 14 was empanelled in Victoria’s Supreme Court on Tuesday after Birchall entered a not-guilty plea to the charge of murder.
Daniel Porceddu, the prosecutor, informed the jury On November 11, Birchall left her boyfriend at their house and drove to Kritikos’ house, where he was alone because his wife was in the hospital, at 3.30 p.m.
Birchall required $8000 to pay for a car she was scheduled to pick up the following day, according to Porceddu, who claimed to be aware that Kritikos had substantial sums of cash on the property.
Birchall was discovered to be in possession of $6535 when she was apprehended, he informed the jurors.
He claimed that Birchall entered the house and repeatedly assaulted Kritikos over the head and face with an unidentified instrument.
Before departing, she had a conversation with a worried neighbour over the garden fence.
After a night out with a friend, she came back later that evening with her husband as they were passing by.
In the hallway, the pair discovered Kritikos moaning while still only partially aware, laying on floorboards and covered in blood.
“Who did it?” George Birchall questioned his father. Porceddu claimed that he responded “her, her, her” in reference to Birchall.
Kritikos was sent to the Royal Melbourne Hospital by ambulance after she dialled 911, but he passed away on November 24.
Porceddu claimed that Birchall left behind bloody footprints at the crime scene, which the prosecution said were used as evidence.
Additionally, he asserted that Birchall had implicated herself in the case during her police interview when she acknowledged visiting the Coburg residence that afternoon and chatting to Kritikos through the rear door.
He informed the jurors, “You can use this lie as an implied admission of guilt by the accused.”
He claimed that after going to the house, she changed, and those things were never found.
Kritikos was also missing a number of teeth when he passed away; three of them were discovered at the crime site, but Porceddu stated two teeth’s whereabouts are still unknown.
The identity of the murderer will be a topic during the trial, according to Birchall’s attorney Chris Pearson, who also claimed that his client had nothing to do with the fatal assault.
He told the jurors, “He was treated in a way that no human being should be treated.”
She was not the one who brought on any of those horrific wounds, plain and simple.
On Wednesday, the trial before Justice Christopher Beale will continue.
