Brantham dog walker was attacked, woman tells murder trial

A woman who is believed to have been murdered while walking her dog was found unresponsive by passers-by, a court has heard.

Anita Rose, 57, was found seriously injured in her home village of Brantham, Suffolk, on the morning of 24 July.

Rachel Island, who was also walking her dog, said she thought Ms Rose had been attacked as she was found only wearing a bra on her top half.

Roy Barclay, 56, of no fixed address, is on trial at Ipswich Crown Court and denies murder.

Giving evidence, Ms Island said she was the second person to arrive at the scene.

She said she did not know Ms Rose but had seen her on dog walks before.

Ms Island said she believed an “attack had happened” as Ms Rose would not normally be out only wearing a bra and it was a cool morning.

She said Ms Rose had “laboured breathing” and patches of blood on her face.

Jerome Tassel, also giving evidence, told jurors he was on his regular cycle from his home in Hadleigh to Manningtree railway station when he found Ms Rose alone “flat on her back” across a gravel path with blood on the left side of her face.

She was breathing and making “snoring” like sounds but was otherwise unresponsive, he said.

He said her dog Bruce was lying “patiently” next to her and the lead was wrapped twice around her leg

Tracy Lea, who said she had been friends with Ms Rose for more than two years, told jurors the pair regularly walked their dogs together.

Ms Rose liked to go out early as her dog could misbehave and she did not like him to “interfere” with others, Ms Lea described.

She said that she would never go out without her phone.

Prosecutors allege Mr Barclay had taken the device and dumped it to “put the police off the trail”

Prosecutors claim that Mr Barclay had been “on the run” trying to avoid being “recalled back to prison”, when he killed Ms Rose.

Mr Barclay sat in the court dock, appearing with a shaved head, grey beard and wearing glasses with a grey tracksuit.

The trial continues.