Deceased/Not Found UK - Leah Louise Ware (still missing) and Alexandra Morgan, May/Nov 2021 *Guilty*

[MsMiniSleuth]

A man accused of murdering two women six months apart said his 'type' in women was 'drop dead girls with mental health issues', a court has been told.

[...]

On Wednesday afternoon at Hove Crown Court the trial heard from Elizabeth Howard, a former school friend. Brown reconnected with her after she returned to using her maiden name on social media.

<modsnip for copyright>

Suspect's 'type' was 'drop dead girls with mental health issues'

Mark Brown, 41, of Squirrel Close in St Leonards, East Sussex, is accused of murdering Alexandra Morgan, 34, and Leah Ware, 33, six months apart in 2021.

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[MsMiniSleuth]

10:22

Good morning - day 8​

Good morning and welcome back to our coverage of this trial from Hove Crown Court. Updates will be continuing today as the case enters day 8.
Prosecution evidence will continue.


10:49

Trial is now back under way​

Mark Brown enters court wearing a white shirt, a navy tie, and a black/dark waistcoat. His hair is slicked back. He is looking straight forward and has little expression.
The judge and jury are also in court and proceedings have now begun.

10:52 KEY EVENT

Forensic evidence to be heard regarding Alex Morgan's remains​

Dr Julie Roberts, a forensic anthropologist and archeologist, is giving evidence first this morning. She is going to give evidence in relation to the discovery and identification of Alex Morgan's remains, which were found at a building site in Sevenoaks.
The jury is shown a set photographs of the site in Sevenoaks, including a skip at the back of the site, a picture looking into the skip, a burnt oil barrel inside the skip.
Dr Roberts specialises in identifying humans, she tells the jury.

11:01

'Very clear' bones in skip had been in a fire​

Dr Roberts is giving her expert insight into the bones that were found in the skip at the Sevenoaks building site. She says it was "very clear" they had been involved in a fire.

11:50

2,600 bone fragments found at the scene​

The jury is shown images of tooth root fragments, with the prosecution saying that these have been identified as those of Alex Morgan. They were found in the skip at the Sevenoaks building site.
Court hears that 2,600 bone fragments were recovered from the scene, as well as small material that was too small to count. At least 338 of these fragments were able to be identified as individual bone and where in the skeleton they had come from.
The other fragments out of the 2,600 couldn't be identified by location on the body. The jury hears that the weight of the fragments was equal to 674g of human bones. Dr Roberts explains that the amount of bone recovered was much less than the average cremated female body.
Fragments of the lower and upper jaw were among those identified, as well as fragments from the top and sides of the skull and back of the head. The jury is also told some were from spine, legs, and “very few” from the pelvis. Fewer fragments were identified from the lower body than upper body.

Mark Brown guilty of two murders - live updates

The trial has focused on the disappearances of Alex Morgan and Leah Ware

www.sussexlive.co.uk

 

[MsMiniSleuth]

12:03

Court is back from a short break​

Following the conclusion of Dr Roberts' evidence, the court took a short break.
Proceedings are now back under way.

12:10

Police officer now giving evidence​

The next witness is a police officer who was serving with Sussex Police at the time of the alleged incidents and investigation.
He specialises in cell-site information, essentially pinpointing data from mobile phones to work out roughly where devices are located.
The police officer is talking the court through how mobile phones connect to cell sites and how this is recorded - networks record where and when you connect, as well as the cell site you end a call on, but not the sites connected to during the call.
Data can also show when an “orderly shut down” happens - manually turning off, or when phone tells network it is low on power.

12:55

Jury now being shown through a timeline of cell-site data​

Jurors are now being shown through a timeline of cell-site data relating to the case.
At various points, Leah Ware's and Mark Brown's phones were placed at a Hastings cell mast that is in reach of Little Bridge Farm.

Mark Brown guilty of two murders - live updates

The trial has focused on the disappearances of Alex Morgan and Leah Ware

www.sussexlive.co.uk

 

[MsMiniSleuth]

2,600 bone fragments. That must have been an arduous and painstaking task to collate and put together.

 

[MsMiniSleuth]

13:08

Break for lunch​

Following some very detailed explanations regarding cell-site data and how it works, there will now be an hour's break in court for lunch.

 

[MsMiniSleuth]

14:13

Afternoon session has now begun​

The Sussex Police officer is back to continue evidence after lunch, again with a focus on cell-site data and mobile phone analysis relating to the case.
The court hears that Leah Ware's phone activity was through five cell sites in the Hastings area, all consistent with her being at Little Bridge Farm.

14:36

Times when Leah Ware's phone 'vanished'​

The court hears that there were times when Leah Ware's phone "vanished" despite not having been shut down or low on power. Jurors are told that this happened when the phone had been last connected to a tower covering Little Bridge Farm.
On one occasion, there was a period of two hours when there was no 'handshake' - a signal every couple of seconds to the mast - between the phone and the cell site.
The police officer says that explanations for that sudden dip is a sudden loss of signal or the device being shut down.

15:15

'Total blackout' of cell coverage inside closed container at Little Bridge Farm​

The police officer says that mobile coverage while inside a container at Little Bridge Farm, with the door shut, was a "total blackout". He agrees when asked that, if a phone went into the container and the door was shut, it would then “disappear” from the network and there would be no detach signal to the network.

Mark Brown guilty of two murders - live updates

The trial has focused on the disappearances of Alex Morgan and Leah Ware

www.sussexlive.co.uk

 

[MsMiniSleuth]

Very sporadic reporting from court.

 

[MsMiniSleuth]

16:44

Proceedings have finished for the day​

Following some more evidence regarding cell sites and whereabouts phones linked to Leah Ware and Mark Brown were placed, court has ended for the day.

 

[LammyTheRobot]

10:22

Good morning - day 8​

Good morning and welcome back to our coverage of this trial from Hove Crown Court. Updates will be continuing today as the case enters day 8.
Prosecution evidence will continue.


10:49

Trial is now back under way​

Mark Brown enters court wearing a white shirt, a navy tie, and a black/dark waistcoat. His hair is slicked back. He is looking straight forward and has little expression.
The judge and jury are also in court and proceedings have now begun.

10:52 KEY EVENT

Forensic evidence to be heard regarding Alex Morgan's remains​

Dr Julie Roberts, a forensic anthropologist and archeologist, is giving evidence first this morning. She is going to give evidence in relation to the discovery and identification of Alex Morgan's remains, which were found at a building site in Sevenoaks.
The jury is shown a set photographs of the site in Sevenoaks, including a skip at the back of the site, a picture looking into the skip, a burnt oil barrel inside the skip.
Dr Roberts specialises in identifying humans, she tells the jury.

11:01

'Very clear' bones in skip had been in a fire​

Dr Roberts is giving her expert insight into the bones that were found in the skip at the Sevenoaks building site. She says it was "very clear" they had been involved in a fire.

11:50

2,600 bone fragments found at the scene​

The jury is shown images of tooth root fragments, with the prosecution saying that these have been identified as those of Alex Morgan. They were found in the skip at the Sevenoaks building site.
Court hears that 2,600 bone fragments were recovered from the scene, as well as small material that was too small to count. At least 338 of these fragments were able to be identified as individual bone and where in the skeleton they had come from.
The other fragments out of the 2,600 couldn't be identified by location on the body. The jury hears that the weight of the fragments was equal to 674g of human bones. Dr Roberts explains that the amount of bone recovered was much less than the average cremated female body.
Fragments of the lower and upper jaw were among those identified, as well as fragments from the top and sides of the skull and back of the head. The jury is also told some were from spine, legs, and “very few” from the pelvis. Fewer fragments were identified from the lower body than upper body.

Mark Brown guilty of two murders - live updates

The trial has focused on the disappearances of Alex Morgan and Leah Ware

www.sussexlive.co.uk

“The jury hears that the weight of the fragments was equal to 674g of human bones. Dr Roberts explains that the amount of bone recovered was much less than the average cremated female body.”

JMO but is Dr Roberts implicitly implying that a whole person wasn’t burned in that barrel?

 

[MsMiniSleuth]

10:21

Good morning - day 9​

Good morning and welcome back to our coverage of this trial from Hove Crown Court. Updates will be continuing today as the case enters day 9.

10:38

Trial resumes​

Mark Brown arrives in court wearing a white shirt, a dark tie and grey suit trousers. His hair is slicked back and he is clean shaven.
The judge and jury are also in court and proceedings have now begun.

10:52

Cell site expert to give evidence​

DC Julian Skeath , a cell site expert, has been called to the stand by Duncan Atkinson KC. Mr Skeath has been a police officer for 25 years and he specialises in cell site and radio frequency data.

11:02

Jury shown cell site data​

The jury is being shown a map of cell site data from November 14 2021, from 8am until 2pm. The map shows Brown’s phone connecting to 15 cell sites in that time coming from four different masts.
DC Skeath has confirmed that each of the cells, connected to the four masts, provided coverage over Little Bridge Farm. He surveyed the cell site data at Little Bridge Farm on November 26, 2021, within the container with both the door open and shut.
He said:

“It’s a sealed container, I was fully expecting the container to affect radio waves and they did. With the door open the phone was detecting cells and you could make calls. As soon as the door was closed and you could see no more daylight, the signal dropped, it needed the door to be fully closed to lose the signal.”

11:26

Cell data from June 8 and 9 2021​

The jury is being shown a cell site map from the evening of June 8 to the morning of June 9, 2021. The data shows Alexandra Morgan’s phone was at her home address during that time frame.
The data is also consistent with Brown’s phone being at her home address or somewhere in the area that the cell site provides, and shows Brown returning to his home address at around 4am.
The court has also heard that, on June 8, Brown took a photograph of a Shell petrol station close to the house of Alexandra Morgan.

11:44

Cell data from August 1 2021​

Data shows Alexandra Morgan’s phone connected to cell sites at her home address in the evening of August 1. The defendant’s phone also connected to cells at Alexandra Morgan’s home address for an hour period that evening.
The jury is shown another map of cell site data on August 1 from 8.50pm until 11.30pm that evening. Both phones use cell sites heading down the map towards Little Bridge Farm.
DC Skeath says both phones were “moving in the same direction at around the same time.” He says this means they “could” have been together during that period.
Between 9.21pm and 11.21pm, their phones were both connected in the area of Little Bridge Farm.
Cell site data later suggests that they then both head back to the area of Alexandra Morgan’s home where her phone remains. Brown’s phone then heads back towards his home address.

12:06

Activity in August and September​

Between 5.36am and 10.09am on August 7 2021, ANPR pictures capture Mr Brown’s car heading from Cranbrook to West Yorkshire. Alexandra Morgan purchased a white Mini Cooper and ANPR cameras captured both this car, and Brown’s car heading back south from West Yorkshire.
Cell site data supports both Alex Morgan and the defendant taking this journey. It showed Brown’s phone moving from the area of his home address to that of Alexandra Morgan and then to West Yorkshire and back.
On August 9 2021, cell site data was consistent with both Alexandra Morgan and Mr Brown being at the Little Bridge Farm site before heading back to their home addresses. Several other dates across August and September show Ms Morgan’s phone using the cell sites at Little Bridge Farm. Mark Brown’s phone was at those cell sites before both headed home.

Mark Brown guilty of two murders - live updates

The trial has focused on the disappearances of Alex Morgan and Leah Ware

www.sussexlive.co.uk

 

[MsMiniSleuth]

12:48 KEY EVENT

Cell data from day Alexandra was last seen​

The jury is being shown CCTV imagery of Ms Morgan’s car and that of the defendant at the Little Bridge Farm site on November 14 - the day she was last seen. Cell site data picks up Alexandra Morgan’s phone at 7.58am that morning in the Hastings area.
This is the last time ever that her phone connected to the network. At 8.03am that morning, Mark Brown’s phone connects to the same cell sites as those used by Alexandra Morgan’s phone just five minutes earlier.
DC Skeath said:

“The Hastings cell sites are those we have seen that serve Little Bridge Farm.”

The court is told that the CCTV imagery and cell site data are consistent with Alexandra Morgan being at the Little Bridge Farm site at 7.58am that morning.
Her last data session began at 07.58.08am on November 14 and ended 43 seconds later at 07.58.51am.

13:09 KEY EVENT

Ms Morgan's phone 'lost connection to the network'​

Asking whether this was consistent with the phone being inside the container with the door closed, DC Skeath said:

“Yes. The phone has lost the connection to the network, one explanation is that it has no signal. I surveyed Little Bridge Farm quite extensively and found service in all the areas of the farm I surveyed. The only place I didn’t find service was the container with the door closed.”

14:13

Proceedings resume​

Mark Brown has returned to court. The judge and jury have also returned. Proceedings will now get underway again following an hour's lunch break.

14:38 KEY EVENT

Data from days after Ms Morgan was last seen​

On the morning of November 14, DC Skeath said Mr Brown’s phone connected to the cell site at 8.03am. CCTV footage of the pair’s cars show he arrived a little earlier.
Brown continued to use cell sites at the farm throughout that day. He left the site shortly before 2pm that afternoon.
At 12.35am on November 15 Morgan’s Mini Cooper leaves Little Bridge Farm. The jury is shown cell site and ANPR data that shows Brown’s movements in the afternoon of November 14 and the early hours of November 15.
On the morning of November 17, Brown’s phone connected to a cell site in the Sevenoaks area where he had been working. At 6.55pm that day, the defendant’s phone returned to the cell site in the area of Little Bridge Farm.The court observes CCTV images from 7.04pm showing the defendant’s white van leaving Little Bridge Farm, followed by the Mini Cooper.

14.59

Areas covered by cell sites are 'quite large'​

Mr Ian Henderson KC takes a turn at questioning on behalf of the defence. He states that the areas covered by each cell site are quite large and can cover several miles.
Mr Henderson KC asks Mr Skeath to clarify the meaning of a data record between the phone and the network. “An analogy that I like to use is if the network needs to contact your phone, it has to have a rough idea of where it is,” DC Skeath replies.
Mr Henderson KC asks if the results on different days get identical results. “No," DC Skeath replies. "The network is always changing. That’s why we try to do a survey as close to the event as possible.”

15:14

DC Skeath leaves stand​

DC Skeath leaves the witness stand. A new witness will now be giving evidence.

Mark Brown guilty of two murders - live updates

The trial has focused on the disappearances of Alex Morgan and Leah Ware

www.sussexlive.co.uk

 

[MsMiniSleuth]

15:17 KEY EVENT

Alan Downs to give evidence​

The next witness to appear is Alan Downs. Mr Downs worked at a building site in Sevenoaks - his business is a groundworks and civil engineering company.
He confirms that he employed Mr Brown around January 2021 following the recommendation of another worker.

15:23

Mr Brown 'was a good worker'​

Speaking on working with Mr Brown, Alan Downs said:

“He was a good worker, very hardworking, always there on time, all the hours and anything that was asked of him. A very good worker.”

15:26 KEY EVENT

'He said she was the love of his life'​

When asked by Mr Atkinson KC on behalf of the prosecution whether he was aware that Mr Brown had a relationship with someone other than his partner, Alan said:

“He had told me and had told some of the lads in the canteen. He showed some of the lads a picture on his phone of one of the girls he was seeing.
“He said she was the love of his life. He said they had been together years ago but that he had mucked it up, He said she was his princess and the love of his life.
“I think he said she had two kids.”

15:39 KEY EVENT

Mr Brown's access to oil drums​

Speaking on Mr Brown's access to oil drums, Alan said: “We did have some oil drums stored in a lorry yard. He took some from us - there was a scrap dealers at the bottom of his yard, I assumed that was where he would have taken them.”
When asked by Mr Atkinson KC about the defendant's work van, Alan said:

“He took the van home, he could use it at any time.”

15:51 KEY EVENT

November 24 2021​

Mr Brown calls his boss using the phone of Bradley Nicholson and asks to speak to Richard Winchester, another colleague who was at work at the time.
When asked by Mr Atkinson KC about his recollection of what the call was about, Alan said: “I think he might have said about the police being down at fishy’s yard - fishy is what we used to call Mark because of his former job.”
Mr Downs saw the defendant at the Sevenoaks site later that day. In a statement from December last year, he said: “I asked him why he was using someone else’s phone. He said the police had his phone and he was going to be arrested."
Mr Downs says: "At the time I said 'what the *advertiser censored** for', and he said he was going to be arrested for murder, after a slight pause, then he said double. I’ll be going away for 25 years to life. I’m going to have to go down for this one, 25 years to life."

15:56

Missing woman appeal​

Speaking on the appeal for a missing person that was issued, Alan Downs said:

“At first we thought it was the Alexandra one. We presumed that was the girl that they were looking for. They looked very similar, that threw me at the beginning, they had the same colour hair and similar build.”

Mr Downs confirms the girl in the appeal looked a lot like the girl in the picture Brown had shown his colleagues.

Mark Brown guilty of two murders - live updates

The trial has focused on the disappearances of Alex Morgan and Leah Ware

www.sussexlive.co.uk

 

[MsMiniSleuth]

16:18

Proceedings have finished for the day​

Our full round up will be available soon as usual, and updates will resume on Monday morning.

 

[LammyTheRobot]

The defence barrister asks some very interesting questions of the witnesses so far. Initially you read what the witness says to the prosecution, and thank "ah, that nails him", then the defence KC asks a tiny simple question and you think "hmmm."

I can see they are planting the seeds of doubt - guess he's doing his job. But there's no body for LW, and unless the prosecution can prove he killed AM, then there is a real possibility this case might collapse. Which would be staggering, IMO.

 

[MsMiniSleuth]

12:48 KEY EVENT

Cell data from day Alexandra was last seen​

The jury is being shown CCTV imagery of Ms Morgan’s car and that of the defendant at the Little Bridge Farm site on November 14 - the day she was last seen. Cell site data picks up Alexandra Morgan’s phone at 7.58am that morning in the Hastings area.
This is the last time ever that her phone connected to the network. At 8.03am that morning, Mark Brown’s phone connects to the same cell sites as those used by Alexandra Morgan’s phone just five minutes earlier.
DC Skeath said:

The court is told that the CCTV imagery and cell site data are consistent with Alexandra Morgan being at the Little Bridge Farm site at 7.58am that morning.
Her last data session began at 07.58.08am on November 14 and ended 43 seconds later at 07.58.51am.

13:09 KEY EVENT

Ms Morgan's phone 'lost connection to the network'​

Asking whether this was consistent with the phone being inside the container with the door closed, DC Skeath said:


14:13

Proceedings resume​

Mark Brown has returned to court. The judge and jury have also returned. Proceedings will now get underway again following an hour's lunch break.

14:38 KEY EVENT

Data from days after Ms Morgan was last seen​

On the morning of November 14, DC Skeath said Mr Brown’s phone connected to the cell site at 8.03am. CCTV footage of the pair’s cars show he arrived a little earlier.
Brown continued to use cell sites at the farm throughout that day. He left the site shortly before 2pm that afternoon.
At 12.35am on November 15 Morgan’s Mini Cooper leaves Little Bridge Farm. The jury is shown cell site and ANPR data that shows Brown’s movements in the afternoon of November 14 and the early hours of November 15.
On the morning of November 17, Brown’s phone connected to a cell site in the Sevenoaks area where he had been working. At 6.55pm that day, the defendant’s phone returned to the cell site in the area of Little Bridge Farm.The court observes CCTV images from 7.04pm showing the defendant’s white van leaving Little Bridge Farm, followed by the Mini Cooper.

14.59

Areas covered by cell sites are 'quite large'​

Mr Ian Henderson KC takes a turn at questioning on behalf of the defence. He states that the areas covered by each cell site are quite large and can cover several miles.
Mr Henderson KC asks Mr Skeath to clarify the meaning of a data record between the phone and the network. “An analogy that I like to use is if the network needs to contact your phone, it has to have a rough idea of where it is,” DC Skeath replies.
Mr Henderson KC asks if the results on different days get identical results. “No," DC Skeath replies. "The network is always changing. That’s why we try to do a survey as close to the event as possible.”

15:14

DC Skeath leaves stand​

DC Skeath leaves the witness stand. A new witness will now be giving evidence.

Mark Brown guilty of two murders - live updates

The trial has focused on the disappearances of Alex Morgan and Leah Ware

www.sussexlive.co.uk

I am putting the main thread here for those who need to refresh their minds with all this data, and how the reports initially filtered out.

Found Deceased - UK - Alexandra Morgan, 34, Sissinghurst, Kent, 13 Nov 2021 *arrest*

Police are searching for a missing woman. Officers are appealing for help to find Alexandra Morgan from Sissinghurst. Ms Morgan, 34, was last seen in the village at around 9.30am on Saturday. She is white and around 5ft 6ins with a slim build and brown shoulder length hair. She was last...

www.websleuths.com

According to Kent Police, AM was last seen in Sissinghurst at 9.30am on Saturday, November 13. Then CCTV image showed her at 7.20am on Sunday 14 November at a petrol station near Cranbrook. I think we had the lady from there on here?

 

[MsMiniSleuth]

Court will not be sitting today. The trial will resume tomorrow at 10:15am.

 

[MsMiniSleuth]

10:29

Good morning - day 10​

Good morning and welcome back to our coverage of this trial from Hove Crown Court. Updates will be continuing today as the case enters day 10.

Mark Brown guilty of two murders - live updates

The trial has focused on the disappearances of Alex Morgan and Leah Ware

www.sussexlive.co.uk

 

[MsMiniSleuth]

While waiting for today's proceedings to unfold, here is a court recap so far:

Mark Brown murder trial so far - a day-by-day look at what has happened in court

Leah Ware and Alex Morgan both disappeared in 2021 and Mark Brown is on trial for their murder

www.sussexlive.co.uk

 

[MsMiniSleuth]

11:11

Trial resumes​

Mark Brown arrives in court wearing a dark suit, a white shirt and a dark tie. His hair is slicked back and he appears clean shaven.

The judge and jury are also in court and proceedings have now begun.

11:14

Darren Ripley to give evidence​

Darren Ripley is the first person called to give evidence today. He confirms he first met Brown around the year 2000 through a friend in the car trade.
He tells the court when asked by Duncan Atkinson KC of the prosecution that he would see Mr Brown "every so often" and describes the defendant as "A friend and an acquaintance, not a close friend, but a friend.”

11:19

Little Bridge Farm​

Mr Ripley tells the jury he was aware of the Little Bridge Farm that Mr Brown rented and had been aware of it for many years before Mr Brown had started renting it. When asked by Mr Atkinson KC if he had been to Little Bridge Farm to see the defendant and what the purpose of his visit was, Mr Ripley said: “sometimes on a pleasure basis, we’d take the children up there.”
He also tells the court he knew about Mr Brown’s partner, Lisa, but did not know about any other women in his life.

11:35 KEY EVENT

November 17 2021​

Mr Atkinson KC confirms that, having helped the defendant move a car on November 17, Mr Ripley was arrested during investigations. Mr Ripley says that he was working on a car when Mr Brown rang and asked for help moving a car at around 5pm.
He confirms that he had not heard of Alexandra Morgan before.
Mr Atkinson KC confirms that there was a two-minute call from Mr Brown to Mr Ripley at 5.11pm. Mr Ripley confirms this was the call in which the defendant asked for help in moving a car, and says he was reluctant to help as the date marked the anniversary of the passing of his wife, which was also her birthday.
The court hears that Mr Brown was keen for the car to be moved on that day, but at this stage Mr Ripley was unaware of where the car was being moved to or what type of car it was. He confirms that Mr Brown had helped him move cars "several times" in the past, including that month.
Mr Brown picked up Mr Ripley from his home that evening in a white van and drove to Little Bridge Farm.

11:41

Arriving at Little Bridge Farm​

That evening, CCTV footage captures the van arriving at Little Bridge Farm at 6.55pm on November 17. When asked about what the plan was, Mr Ripley said: “I was going to drive the van and Mark was going to drive the Mini. When we arrived it was in the barn that was locked.”
He confirms that the plan was to drop off the Mini on Harrow Lane in Hastings.
Describing the car to the court, Mr Ripley said: "It was a white Mini and had two distinctive dents on the roof. I think it had a private registration on it, a short number plate."

11:53

Leaving Little Bridge Farm​

Mr Atkinson KC states that the van, followed by the Mini, was captured leaving Little Bridge Farm at 7.04pm on November 17. Mr Brown drove the Mini whilst Mr Ripley drove the van, and they ended up at Holmhurst Lane, just off Harrow Lane.
Mr Ripley confirms Mr Brown dropped the Mini off on Holmhurst Lane before jumping into the van with him. He confirmed that the keys remained with the defendant.
“We drove back to my home address," he said. "He dropped me off and I carried on with my evening.
"Mark was always normal, jovial, he was in a normal mood.”

12:05

'He just said he had to move it'​

During the following week, Mr Ripley says that he saw some press reports that a woman had gone missing and that she had been driving a Mini. Mr Ripley told the jury he revisited Holmhurst Lane where the Mini had been left.
He said the car was still there but stated "I think the number plate had changed".
When questioned by police, Mr Ripley confirms he told them where the Mini was. Mr Ripley was asked if he had any idea whose car that had been, and said: "None whatsoever, no".
When asked if the defendant explained why he was moving the car, Mr Ripley said: "He just said he had to move it and that was that."

12:06

Darren Ripley leaves witness stand​

Darren Ripley has now left the witness stand.

Mark Brown guilty of two murders - live updates

The trial has focused on the disappearances of Alex Morgan and Leah Ware

www.sussexlive.co.uk

 

[MsMiniSleuth]

12:09

Richard Winchester to give evidence​

Mr Winchester confirms that he has known Mr Brown for around 15 years, having met him through a friend. He worked with the defendant for some time at Obsidian.
He knew that Mr Brown lived in the St Leonards area with his partner Lisa. He tells the jury that he was aware that Mr Brown was in relationships with other people.

12:17

Visits to Little Brown Farm​

Mr Winchester confirms he would visit Mr Brown's yard to help repair vehicles. In his statement given to police in December 2021, he said he had last been to Little Bridge Farm around seven or eight months prior to do work on a lorry.
During a visit to Little Bridge Farm in September 2019, Mr Winchester confirms he saw a female at the yard. On that occasion, the static caravan was still on site and Mr Winchester confirms the woman came from the caravan.
"She asked if I'd like a drink," he said, while also stating that he had seen the woman on a previous visit to the farm.

She had been riding a horse and Mr Brown told him that “she looks after the animals.”

12:28 KEY EVENT

Missing woman appeal​

In December 2021, Mr Winchester saw a post shared on Facebook by his girlfriend showing a report of a missing woman. The picture included the missing woman with some animals.
Mr Winchester confirms that this missing woman pictured in the appeal is the one who gave him a drink.

12:40

Phone call between Mr Brown and Alan Downs​

Mr Atkinson KC has asked Mr Winchester about a phone call Mr Brown made to his boss Alan Downs on November 24 2021. During the call, he asked for the phone to be passed to Mr Winchester.
Mr Brown said to Mr Winchester on the call to "tell Derek [Mr Ripley] it's come on top".
Mr Winchester tells Mr Atkinson KC that he spoke to Mr Ripley after the phone call, and he did not understand what Mr Brown meant when he first spoke to him.
Following a question from Mr Henderson KC of the defence, Mr Winchester confirms that Mr Brown told him the police were at his yard.

12:41

Richard Winchester leaves witness stand​

Richard Winchester has finished giving evidence and has now left the witness stand.

Mark Brown guilty of two murders - live updates

The trial has focused on the disappearances of Alex Morgan and Leah Ware

www.sussexlive.co.uk