Andrew Wooler, a vehicle identification expert, said private CCTV footage belonging to a resident on Redhill Drive showed a vehicle heading towards the 73-year-old's home on Redhill Gardens at 1.15pm, one driving the opposite way at 2.58pm and another moving in the direction of Mrs Wright's home at 3.21pm – just three minutes before her son-in-law and business partner David Hill dialled 999.

The prosecution claim Hill, 48, of Lakeside Meadows, Pontefract, bludgeoned the widow to death after "losing his temper" during a confrontation, cleaned up at the scene to cover his tracks and returned later to claim he "discovered" Mrs Wright's body.

The dad-of-two – who worked with Mrs Wright on a greeting card and toy stall at Castleford indoor market – denies murder.

A jury at Leeds Crown Court on Friday (April 18) were shown black-and-white video footage of the three vehicle sightings on the day of the alleged attack, Wednesday September 27 2006.

Mr Wooler said that after analysing the features of the cars in each, be believed the first two showed either a Rover 400 built between 1995 and 2000 or a Honda Civic built between 1995 and 2001.

He said additional information from the indicator in the footage filmed at 3.21pm led him to believe that vehicle was a Rover 400 built before June 1997.

He told the court that after recording his findings, he opened a sealed envelope given to him by police that revealed Hill's car was a red Rover 416i manufactured between 1995 and 1997.

He told the court Hill's vehicle had no obvious modifications or damage he could use to uniquely identify it and that the quality of the footage meant he could only see some acquired features, like stickers.

In cross-examination, Mr Wooler told Robert Smith QC, defending, that he could not say if the three sightings showed the same car or confirm that the car belonged to Hill.

Mr Smith showed him footage taken by Arriva buses at the Airedale Triangle – where Hill, when interviewed as a suspect, told police he had been before visiting Mrs Wright – and asked if a vehicle shown parked in a lay-by at 2.37pm and 2.55pm could be Hill's.

Mr Wooler replied it would be "unsafe" for him to say after being exposed to the details of Hill's car and that the quality of the footage would make analysis difficult.

PC Darren Young told the court that as part of the investigation into Mrs Wright's death, he was asked to acquire and examine CCTV footage to confirm the market trader's movements, look for suspects around Redhill Gardens and check the account given to police by Hill.

He said that when police interviewed Hill as a witness the day after Mrs Wright's death, he told officers he had been to a hairdresser's on Ropergate in Pontefract to book an appointment for his son.

He told the jury there were three cameras on Ropergate, but none showed Hill's car.

The court heard that when Hill was arrested and police interviewed him as a suspect, he provided a different account of his movements on the day of the alleged attack.

Nicholas Campbell QC, prosecuting, said Hill told police he went from his home to the Airedale Triangle where he parked his car and walked around for a while to find a customer who owned him money.

In cross-examination, PC Young told Robert Smith QC that CCTV footage from Arriva buses showed what he believed was a "Rover" car parked where Hill had said.

The court heard Hill told police that before he arrived at Mrs Wright's bungalow, he had been driving along Park Road towards Pontefract but there were road works and busy traffic and he turned down Colorado Way.

Mr Wooler said he did not see Hill's car on CCTV taken from Park Road.

Andrew Frankland, highways supervisor at Wakefield Council, told the jury there were no road works at that location on the day Mrs Wright was killed.

Proceeding.

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