SA court told chef Kim Chau was stabbed by alleged murderer Numan Mohammed 80 times
Details of the alleged murder of Adelaide chef Kim Chau have emerged in court for the first time – as has the size of the police investigation seeking to convict the man charged with her death.
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Chef and restaurant worker Kim Chau was stabbed 80 times by her killer and left in a crime scene that has given forensic experts “unexplained” results, a court has heard.
The Adelaide Magistrates Court was today also told SA Police were cobbling together footage from “thousands” of CCTV cameras around the city to trace the movements of alleged murderer Numan Mohammed.
Mohammed, 21, has yet to plead to one count of murder.
It is alleged he murdered Ms Chau, 39, inside a house on Sturt St in September.
Ms Chau – described by friends as an “amazing” chef – had lived in the house for the previous 12 months.
It is owned by a Labor power couple – SA Health deputy chief executive Donald Frater and his wife, Human Services Department deputy chief executive Lois Boswell.
At the time of Mohammed’s arrest, police said Ms Chau’s body had been hidden in an upstairs bedroom, meaning other occupants of the house would not have known she had been killed.
Today John Mattner, prosecuting, asked the court for a seven-month adjournment in order to finalise the case against Mohammed.
Magistrate Simon Smart questioned whether that was appropriate.
“I might need some help as to why seven months is required,” he said.
Mr Mattner said the case was proving to be “complicated”, with police having already taken 52 statements from potential witnesses.
“The victim was stabbed 80 times … through blood spatter analysis, the accused’s DNA has been identified as has that of the victim,” he said.
“The crime scene was cleaned up afterwards … forensics officers report there have been ‘unexplained interpretations’ in the forensics taken from the scene.
“Diligent investigating officers – and I commend them to Your Honour – have gone out to get CCTV footage from cameras around Sturt St and Adelaide.
“Their intention is to create a compilation of over 1000 hours of footage, from thousands of cameras, that identify the accused and his movements.
“He can be seen at the scene prior to the murder, he then goes around the back of the house, and is then seen driving the victim’s vehicle.”
Mr Smart said police could have five months, not seven, to prepare and remanded Mohammed in custody.