Salma Lalani has secured an acquittal following the trial of a defendant charged with two counts of aggravated burglary.
It was alleged that the defendant and three others, dressed in hoodies, masks and surgical gloves, broke into two occupied houses at night. At the first property a female occupant was held by the assailants at knifepoint, and at a neighbouring property the male occupant was attacked and injured with a screwdriver and secateurs. Blood identifying the defendant was found on an inside door pane used to gain access to the property and on the handle of the screwdriver.
The defendant denied any involvement and said that he had been attacked shortly before the incidents by a group of males. There were complex issues of identification and expert forensic evidence.
