When the trial started in Haugesund today, the defendant once again denied guilt. He has been in custody since September last year, after the police found what they believe must be his DNA on the tights Birgitte Tengs was wearing when she was killed. The tights have been examined a number of times. First in 1996, then in 1997. But the analysis methods at the time were not good enough. In 2012, fiber tape was used on the tights, but no analysis was carried out at the time. The Norwegian Institute of Public Health did not recommend this because of the risk of contamination. In 2017, it was examined again, but it was not until 2019 that the breakthrough came. Then DNA that could be linked to the 52-year-old was found in a stain of Tengs’ blood. – It is clear that this evidence is somewhat difficult to access. We will spend a lot of time on this in the presentation of evidence that will come in the next few weeks, says prosecutor Thale Thomseth to news. The DNA found on the pantyhose is the police’s most important evidence in the case. – The finding is compatible with the perpetrator having deposited his DNA with fingers smeared with Birgitte’s blood, Thomseth said during his introductory speech in Haugaland district court. Tengs was found partially undressed, lying on his back with extensive head injuries after massive violence. STATE ATTORNEY: Thale Thomseth. Photo: Marthe Synnøve Johannessen / news The prosecution believes the sample originates from either saliva or epithelium. – We believe that the DNA trace is relevant to the crime, provided that there is no real possibility of contamination or contamination, said Thomseth. The prosecutor says that there is a general risk of contamination with analyzes from the 90s, because they were less strict than they are today with regard to the requirements for trace protection and awareness of the use of disposable equipment. Strict rules have also been introduced to prevent contagion. DNA can also show the wrong perpetrator due to contamination before the murder. – It is so sensitive that findings can be made that are not directly relevant to the action. DNA can also be transmitted by using the same PC, the same keyboard, or touching a door handle. In this way, DNA can be transferred to a person before the criminal act has taken place, without it being relevant, says the prosecution. THE SCENE: Birgitte Tengs was found 400 meters from her home. The prosecution says that the 52-year-old defendant was well known in the area and has no alibi on the night of the murder. Photo: news Well known in the area Prosecutor Thale Thomseth says that they have no technical evidence showing where the defendant was on the night of the murder. In questioning, he has previously explained that he picked up two hitchhikers that day, but the police have not been able to find evidence of this. DRIVER: The prosecutor says that the 52-year-old drove a lot around Karmøy during the period the murder occurred. Photo: Illustration/Syed Ali Shahbaz Akhtar / news – He has no alibi later in the evening, says Thomseth. The defendant is described as well known in the area where Tengs was found killed, and that he spent a lot of time in the car. Thomseth says that the defendant in the mid-1990s acted almost as a private driver for “teenage girls” in the local area, and that several people are said to have experienced sexual advances from him. The prosecution believes that the murder of Birgitte Tengs was sexually motivated, and in court she highlighted the 52-year-old’s criminal history – which consists of, among other things, violence and sexual crimes. Battle at the scene 17-year-old Birgitte Tengs was found murdered and hidden along a dirt road just 400 meters from the house where she lived with her family on Karmøy. The prosecution is convinced that Birgitte was subjected to abuse. – We don’t have answers to everything, but we believe we have answers to the questions that are legally relevant and the court can pronounce a verdict, said prosecutor Thale Thomseth in his introduction. During the first day of the trial, photos from the crime scene taken 27 years ago were shown. The body was found 12 meters from a small dirt road. A bloody stone found at the scene is linked to the murder. The stone was examined by the police after the murder, but no fingerprints were ever secured. Blood was found on the gravel road, as well as tow tracks. Prosecutor Nina Grande says that it cannot be ruled out that the “initial act” may have been carried out elsewhere than at the site of the discovery. In the same report, there is evidence to suggest that Tengs may have been in a combat situation on the dirt road before the murder. – There are 44 meters of tow tracks, which show that Tengs was dragged along Gamle Sundvegen, over it, and out into the fenced field, says prosecutor Nina Grande. The prosecution says that the evidence is laid out more broadly than usual in a criminal case, but that they have still not been able to determine the time of the murder, but assume that it happened between 00:10 and 04:00 at night. She was found between 9 and 10 in the morning on 6 May. Another central question has also been how Tengs got away from Kopervik, but the investigation has not found a clear answer to this. – After countless investigations, we still do not know where or how Birgitte met the perpetrator, says the prosecutor. Birgitte Tengs was found murdered on 6 May 1995. A 52-year-old man from Karmøy is now charged in the Tengs case, and the trial begins on Monday 7 November 2022.
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Here the police found their most important piece of evidence in the murder case – news Rogaland – Local news, TV and radio
