However, what happened between her death and when
her body was found remained a mystery.
In July last year Donovan Moodley demanded
R3,00,000 ransom for her release.But when her parents
only paid R50 000, Moodley shot the young girl in
the head and then dumped her body in a field on the
outskirts of Johannesburg on July 9. Her body was
found on July 21.
By the time the court adjourned, pathologist Hendrik
Scholtz had concluded his testimony relating to the
state's belief that Moodley did not kill her at the
spot in Walkerville where she was found, but froze
her body for some time before placing it there.
'We are just sitting and keeping our emotions intact'
The crux of the matter appeared to be blood and the
rate of decomposition.
During the post-mortem, Scholtz said he found only
400ml of blood in Leigh's body. Small traces of blood
were found at the scene south of Johannesburg where
a municipal worker cutting grass found her body.
The remaining litres usually found in a human body
were not there.
After the first gunshot to the head, she could have
been unconscious and paralysed, but her heart may
have beaten for a further 20 minutes, Scholtz said.
Scholtz also testified that no post-mortem sunburn
was found on her body, her hair was clean and her
French manicure was in pristine condition.
"The amount of blood we found in the body, and
on the scene, did not make sense," he said.
"There is a lot of blood missing."
The toxicology, report, which was part of the post-mortem
report, also showed that she was on the anti-depressant
Citalopram at the time of her death. Scholtz said
she died within 24 hours of taking the last dose.
Rigor mortis starts within eight hours of being killed
and ends within 36 hours.
In their cross examination, Moodley's defence asked
if the cold night temperatures or a cold wind could
have had the same effect as a refrigerator.
Scholtz said he did not feel that could answer that.
They also found freezer burn on her feet - a reddening
of the skin.
The average temperature in the Walkerville area recorded
at that time was between five and 15°C. A temperature
below 4°C is needed to stop decomposition.
Advocate Johan Pretorius maintained that his client
denied these allegations.
He said Moodley had already admitted to shooting
Matthews and dragging her into the bushes.
It would now be up to the state to prove otherwise.
After Tuesday's hearing, Leigh's mother Sharon Matthews
said Moodley's apology on Monday was "empty words"
and called him a "cold and calculating coward".
Between 50 and 100 people had gathered outside the
Johannesburg High Court as the Moodley and Matthews
family came out.
Rob Matthews said his family did not want to look
at the grisly crime scene pictures shown during the
hearing.
"We are just sitting and keeping our emotions
intact," he said.
His fiancee sat in the court showing little emotion.
A ballistics expert will start his testimony on Wednesday.
- Sapa
