A woman told police she was being stalked and harassed by a man who was later accused of murdering her and another woman, a jury has heard. Naomi Hunte made a number of domestic call-outs to police to her home in 2020 and 2021 and told them that handyman Carl Cooper was “obsessed” with her, London’s Woolwich Crown Court has heard.
Cooper, 66, has pleaded not guilty to murdering Ms Hunte, 41, and Fiona Holm, 48, both of whom he had been in a relationship with at different times, and who had each previously complained to police about his violence. The prosecution described Cooper, of Hither Green, south-east London, as an “obvious suspect” in the killing of Ms Hunte, who was found dead on her blood-soaked sofa on Valentine’s Day in 2022.
Ms Holm is believed to have died on June 20 2023, the prosecution said. Her body has never been found. In a call-out by police on November 24 2020, Ms Hunte told officers: “I think he is obsessed with me. He told me he really likes me. I told him, I just want to be friends. He was angered at that.”
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Ms Hunte said she was “really scared” and reported that Cooper had warned her he was “going to wait out here until the morning, I’m going to watch where you go and who you go and see”. She said they had slept together but were not in a relationship and had separated some days earlier.
She gave the police Cooper’s contact details. Ms Hunte told officers that Cooper was “knocking at my door and harassing me”. One of the officers asked her: “Are you afraid of what he might do to you or anyone else?” She replied “yes” adding: “I do not know, it is scary.”
She said she had blocked his phone calls but he was still trying to make contact. When she was asked if he was going to do her any physical harm, Ms Hunte said she “did not know” and their relationship had involved meeting up for a drink together and talking.
In a police call-out to her home on June 29 2021, Ms Hunte told officers that Cooper “stalks me and I’m really scared now”. The court heard that earlier, when police went to Ms Hunte’s flat on November 6 2020, she told them she did not want to take her allegations any further, saying she had been drunk and could not remember making a complaint.
She was asked if she was afraid of what the person she was complaining about might do to her or someone else, if the abuse was happening more often and if there had been any threats that had made her scared. She replied “no” to all the questions.
Ms Hunte also denied she was being controlled and said that she was “not with anyone”. Earlier on Wednesday, Narita Bahra KC, defending, told the jury they were judges of fact in what is a “very unusual case”. Convictions are being sought on two murders and the body of one of the women has never been found.
Ms Bahra said: “Are we even sure that Fiona Holm is dead and if you are sure then you will have to go on to consider who is responsible for the killing.” She added that “the obvious suspect is a dangerous starting point” and the prosecution are going to rely on something called circumstantial evidence.
She said: “You should take great care not to jump to conclusions, keep an open mind, bias and preconceptions need to be put to one side and if you are not sure about any of the evidence then the benefit must go to Mr Cooper. You need to decide who killed Naomi Hunte or whether Fiona Holm is dead.”
Ms Bahra said proving this is the prosecution’s job “the onus is not on Mr Cooper”. The prosecution believe that Ms Hunte was killed overnight on February 10.
A neighbour noticed that her front door had been open on a number of days afterwards. Another neighbour eventually went in and found her dead. A post-mortem examination found the cause of death to be a stab wound to the chest. She had also drunk alcohol and taken drugs including cocaine and cannabis.
The court has heard that enquiries showed that Ms Hunte had not used her telephone since the early morning of February 10 2022 and the last person to visit her at that time was Cooper. He was arrested and interviewed but denied involvement. Her blood was later found on three different areas of Cooper’s jacket. Ms Hunte’s blood was found on a knife with a serrated blade of two to three inches, which resembled a steak knife.
Ms Holm, of Catford, south-east London, was alcohol dependent, autistic and had ADHD and, like Ms Hunte, had also made complaints about Cooper to the police. Cooper lit fires in the immediate days after Ms Holm went missing and also carried out a “wholesale redecoration” of his living room, which included stripping off wallpaper, cutting out net curtains and removing a rug, prosecutor Joel Smith KC has said.
He described Cooper as a “callous bully” who has “a predilection to control women” and is “prone to violence when challenged.”
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