'George and no other' shot Dando

Barry George "and no other" could have murdered television presenter Jill Dando, a jury has been told.

Prosecutor Jonathan Laidlaw QC told jurors that all the evidence against the accused could not be explained "merely by unhappy coincidence".

He said the case was "not straightforward", but prosecutors "do not lack any confidence at all" that Mr George is guilty.

Mr George, 48, denies murdering Miss Dando on 26 April 1999.

The Crimewatch presenter was shot dead on the doorstep of her home in Fulham, west London.

'No rational motive'

In his closing speech at the Old Bailey, Mr Laidlaw said the case had been "demanding and exacting" for the police.

"There was no obvious candidate for this killing, nobody with anything approaching a rational motive to kill this woman," he said.

"Miss Dando was attractive and talented but also an extremely popular journalist and presenter. Nobody speaks ill of her."

The prosecutor said there had been "countless theories" about her murder, but he urged the jury to ignore them.

"The police found that he was a man obsessed or fascinated by celebrities"
Jonathan Laidlaw QC

Miss Dando had not been the subject of any threats as a result of her work on Crimewatch and had not fallen out with any ex-boyfriends, he said.

There was no evidence to support suggestions that she was the victim of a contract killing, he said.

But, Mr Laidlaw told jurors, when Mr George was first interviewed by police "things began to fall into place".

Officers found in his home evidence of an interest in the military and guns, he said.

"The police also found that he was a man obsessed or fascinated by celebrities and interested in, in particular, female presenters and newscasters.

"As the inquiry developed, as the picture built, you 12 all now understand why it is the prosecution say, and they maintain, that this man in court, Barry George, and no other, murdered Jill Dando.

"When you put the evidence together, when you look collectively at the component parts of it, each arising independently, then all this cannot possibly be explained merely by unhappy coincidence."

Mr George, of Fulham, did not give evidence in his defence, but earlier this week, a neuropsychiatrist told the court that scans of his brain had produced "severely abnormal" results.

He is being retried, having first faced trial for the killing in 2001.

The prosecution has now concluded its closing speech. The defence is expected to begin its closing speech on Friday.