Man Pleads “Not Guilty” Of Birna’s Murder

The man charged with Birna Brjánsdóttir’s murder plead “Not Guilty” in the first court hearing, yesterday.

His not-guilty plea covers both the murder charge and a separate drug smuggling charge (which he has previously admitted guilt for).

State Prosecutor, Kolbrún Benediktsdóttir presented evidence and several reports to the court but none of the documents have been made public.

The suspect’s defence lawyer requested time to go through all the evidence presented and the court granted him two weeks to do so, RÚV reports.

The suspect hid his face under a blanket as he was led into the courtroom by police and removed it only when the judge entered the room.

New details of the crime emerged last week when the official charges were filed. RÚV reports that the charges accuse the suspect of severely beating and choking Birna before ending her life by throwing her into the sea, where she drowned.