Paramedic admits feeling 'twitchy' after becoming fearful of 'playacting' alleged murderer while battling to save Kayleigh Dunning

Paramedic Debbie Tobutt told Portsmouth Crown Court she became fearful over the presence of alleged killer Mark Brandford after believing Kayleigh Dunning had been murdered after suffering ‘catastrophic’ injuries.

The defendant, 49, is alleged to have ‘brutally’ murdered Ms Dunning, 32, in a jealous rage after proposing to her overnight on December 16-17 in 2019 at his home in Kingston Crescent, North End.

The court heard Ms Tobutt arrived at the address with a South Central Ambulance Service colleague around 9.45pm on December 17 to take over CPR on a ‘very cold’ Ms Dunning from Colas road sweeper Brandford, who moments earlier had made an anguished 999 call.

During the frantic efforts to save the blood-soaked Ms Dunning, the paramedic suddenly noticed erratic behaviour from Brandford who was trying to make himself sick.

‘There was a lot of gagging going on,’ she told jurors. ‘As I walked round past him I saw him with his fingers down his throat.

‘I felt it was very strange, you don’t normally see people with fingers down their throat in that situation.

‘I was getting concerned by his behaviour and the injuries I had seen.’

After helping Brandford out of the room, Ms Tobutt returned to the bedroom before telling her colleague: ‘I think she has been murdered. We need to get the police.’

She continued: ‘I was starting to get twitchy after seeing her injuries and from his behaviour. I felt quite vulnerable as I was suspecting something sinister had happened.

‘I did not want to phone the police while he was there so my colleague went downstairs and phoned the police.’

She added: ‘(His behaviour) was very odd. I’ve seen a lot of people grieve in lots of different ways during my 14 years as a paramedic but I have never seen anyone act like him.

‘Everything seemed so exaggerated...like he wasn’t sure how to act and was putting on an act. It came across as staged.’

Ms Tobutt also told the court she found it strange that Brandford was not putting in much effort with CPR after they entered the room. ‘There was no effort there,’ she said.

She also raised questions over the way he was crying. ‘There were no real tears, it was just a staged noise,’ she said.

The paramedic also told jurors Brandford ‘appeared to be playacting’ after ‘staggering’ as he was helped over Ms Dunning’s body and out of the room.

Meanwhile, the court was played a recording of Brandford’s 999 call prior to the arrival of paramedics where he was heard crying and screaming for help. ‘Come quick please,’ he said. ‘My fiancee has got blood everywhere.’

After being asked what happened by the 999 operative, Brandford repeatedly said: ‘I don’t know what happened.’

Asked by the call-handler why he asked for police to attend, he paused before saying: ‘I just need someone to come.’

He added: ‘There’s blood everywhere.’

Brandford was given instructions on how to administer CPR but was struggling to place Ms Dunning on the floor because she was ‘too heavy’.

In the recording Brandford is heard counting to four while apparently carrying out CPR, with him urged to ‘keep pushing harder and faster’.

He again failed to answer why he asked for police when calling 999 before screaming ‘she’s cold, she’s cold’.

Paramedics then arrived and took over chest compressions.

Brandford denies murdering Ms Dunning and a charge of revenge porn relating to him being accused of setting up a fake Facebook profile with intimate images of Ms Dunning.

(Proceeding)

SEE ALSO: CCTV of murder accused after killing of Kayleigh Dunning

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