Strangling accused, Leon Fyle, gives his version of night Destiny died
‘I stole her bag, but she was alive the last time I saw her,’ defendent tells jury
Published: 05 August, 2010
by CHARLOTTE CHAMBERS
THE man accused of strangling a Kentish Town woman who worked as a prostitute told a jury she was “alive and well” when he last saw her.
Leon Fyle, 22, is standing trial at Snaresbrook Crown Court accused of the murder of Destiny Lauren at her home in Leighton Crescent, Kentish Town.
Giving evidence for the first time, Mr Fyle told the court he had been found by police with Ms Lauren’s belongings after her death because he had stolen her handbag after spending 40 minutes with her, during which time she massaged him and provided oral sex.
Mr Fyle, from Lewisham, said: “I just picked [the bag] up and put it down my trousers. It was impulsive.
“I got up and put my coat on and told her I was ready to leave. She came out [of the bathroom] and opened the front door for me, she said: ‘Thanks for coming,’ and that was it. I left.”
He said he had been “disappointed” by the experience because Ms Lauren’s flat was messy. Ms Lauren, 29, a pre-operative transsexual, was found dead in November.
The prosecution allege that Mr Fyle was her last customer and strangled her before leaving and heading to a brothel in King’s Cross.
Mr Fyle, who admitted selling cannabis and MDMA – a powdered form of ecstasy, – said he found Ms Lauren’s number in a magazine on a train and was “intrigued”.
He said he found £350 in Ms Lauren’s handbag and went to King’s Cross where he had sex with two more prostitutes before catching a cab back to his friend’s home.
The court has also heard this week how Mr Fyle was jailed for two years in 2005 following the stabbing of a man he had close sexual contact with.
Gary Mitchell, who sustained a knife wound just a centimetre away from his heart, told the court: “We had a bit of scuffle. From what he’d been before – [a] very nice person – all of a sudden he turned from the character he had been. He punched me and said: ‘If you come any closer I’ll kill you’.”
Mr Fyle said he pleaded guilty to intending to cause GBH to Mr Mitchell because “I didn’t want none of my brethren to know I had a sexual encounter” but that it was self defence.
Although “confused” about his sexuality at the time, he said he has since come to terms with his bisexuality.
“I knew I liked girls – I always liked girls,” he said.
“I was just confused about my sexual feelings I was feeling about men.”
Prosecutor Duncan Penny asked Mr Fyle why, if he was “content” with his sexuality, he had never told his girlfriends or friends about his attraction to men.
“Is it because you were ashamed?” Mr Penny asked.
“No, it’s my sexuality. They wouldn’t approve but as I said it’s none of their business,” Mr Fyle replied.
The trial continues.