A woman has testified in the murder trial of Malcolm Webster that she slept with him on his first wedding anniversary, months after his wife's death in 1994. Geraldine Oakley told the High Court in Glasgow that as her relationship with Webster developed, she began to suspect he may have killed his wife, Claire Morris.
Ms Oakley, a former computer manager at NHS Grampian, said she first met Webster in 1993 or 1994. They were friends before Mrs Morris died in a car crash on the Kingoodie's Auchenhuive to Tarves Road. Ms Oakley was on holiday at the time and learned of the accident when she met Webster, who was wearing a medical collar.
On 3 September 1994, the anniversary of his wedding to Mrs Morris, Webster phoned Ms Oakley saying he did not want to be alone. She invited him to her home near Cruden Bay, where they kissed and he stayed the night. Ms Oakley said she became concerned when Webster repeatedly asked whether a second autopsy would be performed on his wife. She told police she considered speaking to a pathologist because she thought Webster might have killed his wife.
The court also heard from crash reconstruction expert Stephen Jowitt, who previously stated it was 'highly likely' the crash was staged. Under cross-examination by defence QC Edgar Prais, Jowitt acknowledged that his conclusions were based on photographs and witness statements, and that few people can accurately judge time or distance.
Webster denies murdering Mrs Morris by intentionally crashing their car and setting it on fire, as well as fraudulently obtaining insurance policies after her death. He also denies attempting to kill his second wife, Felicity Drumm, in New Zealand in 1999, and forming a fraudulent scheme to enter into a bigamous marriage with Simone Banerjee. The trial continues on Monday.
