By Calvin Palmer
Intruders have broken into the house in Perugia, central Italy, where British exchange student Meredith Kercher was murdered.
Prosecutors say the break-in was discovered early today during an official inspection of the murder site, which has been sealed since the crime.
The intruders broke a window, ransacked the house and left four kitchen knives and some candles behind in various rooms but not in the bedroom where Kercher’s body was found in November 2007.
Kercher’s roommate, American student Amanda Knox, and Knox’s former boyfriend, Raffaele Sollecito, are on trial for the murder and sexual assault. They deny the charges.
The trial resumes a week on Friday.
Ivory Coast immigrant, Rudy Guede, was sentenced to 30 years in prison last October in a fast-track trial.
The prosecution alleges that all three were involved in the murder, which was the result of a “sex game” that ended in assault and death.
Police said they were investigating whether the break-in was the result of a “Satanic ritual” or a “message in code” relating to the killing.
Kercher’s throat was allegedly slit by a kitchen knife found at Sollecito’s flat, and Knox and Sollecito are accused of smashing a window to make it look as if Kercher was attacked by a burglar.
Francesco Maresca, the Italian lawyer for the Kercher family, said he was “astonished and appalled”.
“I hope the matter will be cleared up as soon as possible,” he said.
[Based on reports by The Times and Associated Press.]
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