Angus man who allegedly killed girlfriend in Brechin goes on trial
Keith Rizzo is accused of choking and stabbing Neomi Smith to death at a flat last summer
Last updated 21st Feb 2020
An Angus man has gone on trial charged with the murder of his partner.
Keith Rizzo, 23, is accused of killing Neomi Smith at her flat in Brechin, Angus on June 9 2019.
It is claimed he initially forced entry to the property and compressed Miss Smith's neck restricting her breathing.
Rizzo is then said to have repeatedly struck the 23 year-old on the head and body with knives.
Rizzo faces a separate charge of assaulting Miss Smith to her injury and danger of life between May 5 and June 8 2019.
Prosecutors claim this happened at her flat and Hudson's Bar in Brechin.
The charge includes accusations Rizzo hit Miss Smith's head off a wall, punched her and caused her to lose consciousness by again compressing her neck.
He is further charged with threatening and abusive behaviour against Miss Smith.
Rizzo also faces allegations involving four other women – three described on the indictment as his “ex-partner”.
These accusations span between December 2014 and May 2019.
Mary Saville – one of the women listed – was the first witness to testify in the trial today/yesterday.
She told prosecutor Duncan McPhie how they had been in a relationship after they started dating in 2014.
The 23 year-old support worker went on to allege a number of assaults at the hands of Rizzo.
She claimed the first was in his bedroom at his mum's flat in Brechin.
Miss Saville added: “I was pushed into a sliding glass mirrored door which smashed.”
The witness then recalled “things becoming physical” on a later date at her mum's home in the town.
She initially alleged being shoved against a door.
Mr McPhie asked: “What happened to your neck?'
Miss Saville: “He compressed my neck while I was against the door.”
The witness further claimed she was “kicked in the ribcage”.
Miss Saville told jurors they split in 2016 after an incident at her at her home in Aberdeen.
She recalled confronting a “drunk” Rizzo about a message she had discovered.
Miss Saville claimed she had to leave her home before police were alerted.
Rizzo denies the charges.
The trial, before Lady Rae, continues.
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