Alcohol likely played a role in the death of British backpacker Grace Millane, an expert has told her murder trial in New Zealand.
Pathologist Dr Fintan Garavan said the narrative of rough sex from the man accused of killing her was an “adequate” explanation for how she may have died.
Dr Garavan, speaking as the defence case opened on the third week of the trial, said that a "sharp force applied around the neck" can stop the heart “very quickly”.
He said Miss Millane's alcohol intake could have been a secondary factor in the cause of her death.
He told the jury that alcohol affects both the heart and the respiratory system. "So if you increase the amount of alcohol, those people are at an increased risk of sudden death," he said.
Miss Millane, from Wickford in Essex, was on the New Zealand leg of a round-the-world trip when she died in an Auckland hotel room while on a Tinder date with the man accused of murdering her in December last year.
It is alleged he murdered her during rough sex that night, but he insists her death was accidental.
Prosecutors allege the 27-year-old strangled Miss Millane before disposing of her body.
Miss Millane had several alcoholic drinks on the night she died. Dr Garavan said the intake was a “significant” amount for over a short amount of time.
He said it was “very likely” her alcohol consumption was a “very important indirect layer” in causing her death.
The forensic pathologist said there were no signs of any defensive injuries on Millane's body.
"The fingernails are not particularly helpful," he said.
The man suspected of murdering Miss Millane admitted putting Ms Millane's body in a suitcase and burying it in a mountainous woodland area outside Auckland.
He told police he had "freaked out" after finding her dead in the morning after their date.
Defence lawyer Ron Mansfield told the jury there was an “absence of any motive”.
Mansfield said his client "panicked out of a fear of the consequence" when he disposed of Miss Millane's body.
New Zealand courts have banned reporting the defendant's name and the country's government has asked international media to respect that ruling.
The trial continues.
