British backpacker Grace Millane told her best friend she had “clicked” with the man accused of strangling her to death, with CCTV footage showing the pair enjoying a date together during her final hours alive.
Half an hour of video has been shown to the jury in the murder trial at Auckland High Court, where Ms Millane’s parents watched from the public gallery.
One sequence of the footage shows Ms Millane, from Wickford in Essex, taking a picture of a Christmas tree that she sent them while she waited to meet her alleged killer for the first time.
It was the university graduate’s last contact with her family, who on Thursday watched CCTV material covering almost her entire date with the murder suspect in New Zealand’s largest city last December.
The film showed them meeting outside the Sky City casino, drinking at a succession of bars and entering the CityLife hotel where the defendant, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was living.
In a final scene timed at 9. 41 pm on 1 December, which was the eve of Ms Millane’s 22 nd birthday, the couple are seen exiting the hotel lift and heading to his apartment.
Ms Millane had arranged to meet the 27 – year-old after connecting through Tinder the previous day.
Detective Adam Bicknell told the jury he had been in charge of tracing their movements through the city as part of Operation Gourami – the code name for the police investigation into her disappearance.
He said his team had looked at hundreds of hours of film captured over six days.
The footage shown on Thursday began at 5. 11 pm and showed the defendant entering the Bluestone Room.
Half an hour later, Ms Millane, in a black dress, was seen leaving the Base backpackers’ hostel where she was staying and then walking through rain-soaked streets towards Sky City.
Ms Millane was shown arriving at Sky City in front of its 20 ft Christmas tree, where she stood waiting at 5. 45 pm and could be seen using her phone – seemingly sending parents David and Gill the photo of the tree.
Within minutes, the defendant walked into view, approaching Ms Millane and giving her a hug before they headed into the casino and found Andy’s Burger Bar, where they ordered drinks.
They left at 7. 12 pm and walked back out past the Christmas tree towards a Mexican cafe, where they stayed for an hour , sharing two jugs of margaritas and one of sangria.
They were later seen at the Bluestone Room, where the accused had earlier been drinking beer alone, and kissed several times during their hour-long stay.
Receipts showed they had drunk Heineken, cider and two tequila shots before they left, and at 9. 40 pm they were seen hugging as they entered the lobby of CityLife.
They headed to his apartment via the lift, where it emerged Ms Millane had been encouraged to go by her best friend and she found out he was an oil company manager who lived at a hotel.
Ameena Ashcroft, who had been at Lincoln University with Ms Millane, shared a string of texts her friend while she was out on her date.
In a statement read to the jury in court , Ms Ashcroft, who was in Dubai at the time, said: “I was a bit concerned but I didn’t show Grace that I was.
” I felt something was weird that she was on a date with a manager of an oil company, but due to being fatigued I didn’t want to express this. “
She said more alarm bells rang when she was told the pair were drinking heavily, but became more at ease when her friend told her the date was going “really good” and that the man planned to come to London.
Ms Millane told her friend in one text: “Literally I click with him so well.”
Ms Ashcroft told her: “What. Okay girl. You HAVE to go to his apartment in the hotel. Bet it’s like the top floor. “
Ms Millane replied:” I will let you know what happens tomorrow. “
After entering the apartment, it is alleged by the prosecution that Ms Millane was strangled during sex.
The defendant denies murder, claiming the death was accidental and that Ms Millane had asked him to hold her throat as a way to heighten sexual pleasure.
Ms Ashcroft’s statement said she “sensed Grace was having a good time and she seemed to be drunk and really enjoying herself”, and that she did not have any concerns for her safety.
She was said to be active on dating apps after separating from a previous boyfriend, but Ms Ashcroft said she “never met with someone with the intention to sleep with them”.
“It’s an intimate thing for Grace to sleep with someone, “she said.
” Grace would have to be quite trusting and happy with that person. “
The trial continues.
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