Jogger death accused was 'stoned'

Miss Rasta's naked body was found 12 days after her disappearance

A man, accused of killing an Estonian woman who was out for a jog, has told a court he was "very stoned" when he found the victim's bag in a park.

Egeli Rasta, 27, went missing in July 2006. Her body lay undiscovered for 12 days in Mitcham Common, south London.

Garath Davies, 23, told the Old Bailey he decided to keep a knife and a mobile phone he found in Ms Rasta's bag.

Mr Davies, from Mitcham, south London, denies murder and perverting the course of justice.

Giving evidence he said he had taken out his dog for a walk in the park and was out for only half-an-hour when he found Ms Rasta's bag near a pond.

'Very stoned'

He said he threw away the bag, which also contained her clothes which were stained with a red liquid, and a cap. He assumed the stains came from red wine.

Mr Davies, who is unemployed and lives with his mother, said: "I was very stoned at that time from cannabis."

He told the court he kept the victim's mobile phone, which he used to download tunes, and the knife.

"I smoked a lot of cannabis and I thought I could use it for cutting cannabis," he said.

Earlier speaking about his addiction he said: "I started experimenting at 11 and by 13 it became a regular thing.

"I was chain smoking basically. Every half an hour I would need one."

Decomposed body

Earlier Mark Ellison, for prosecution, told the court Mr Davies had lied when questioned about how he came to possess Ms Rasta's phone.

A kitchen knife with traces of the victim's blood and damp and bloodstained clothing were recovered from his home, the court heard.

Miss Rasta was "fit, athletic, and quite strong" and would often jog and sunbathe on the common.

She went missing a day after working a shift at the LK Bennett concession at Harrods in Knightsbridge, west London.

Mr Ellison said Ms Rasta's body was so decomposed that the pathologist who examined it was unable to establish a cause of death.

The trial continues.