3 days ago
Simon Jones murder case faces lengthy delay due to DNA lab backlog
The case against a Darling Downs man charged with the murder of his mother-in-law faces ongoing extensive delays in the wake of a Queensland DNA lab scandal.
Simon Jones was charged with the murder of 61-year-old Krishna Chopra two months after her body was found in her Park Road home in Crows Nest, north of Toowoomba, on January 31, 2022.
It is believed Ms Chopra died up to 10 days before the discovery.
Police will allege in court that she died from severe head injuries.
Mr Jones, who remains on bail, had his matter briefly mentioned in Toowoomba Magistrates Court on Friday, where the matter of DNA was raised.
He is also charged with one count of a breach of bail.
Police prosecutor Stephanie Thompson said she was yet to receive a summary of DNA evidence or a timeframe on when a full report was expected.
She said the delay was the result of the "recent events with the forensic testing".
Ms Thompson asked for a month's adjournment to see whether the summary would be provided by then.
It comes after a report released this month found serious issues persisted at Queensland's forensic lab, despite two inquiries into the possibility that evidence may have been compromised for criminal trials dating back to 2007, which could potentially have led to miscarriages of justice.
The report found cases in the magistrates' court relying on DNA evidence were being delayed by up to three years.
On Friday, Acting Magistrate Jon Ide said the court was aware of the "large number" of adjournments in the case against Mr Jones.
"I've had some correspondence from a previous magistrate in about April last year to the chief magistrate, talking about the delay and [about] anything that could be done to get things moving, and it was said nothing could happen and obviously nothing had happened," Mr Ide said.
Mr Jones's lawyer Nathan Bouchier said he did not oppose the adjournment.
"I know there's been a long delay in this matter, but it is a complex investigation, and it seems to be ongoing the way it's progressing," he said.
Mr Bouchier said while "all murders are complex", the Crown's case was "circumstantial" against his client.
Mr Ide replied: "Which probably makes the full DNA even more important."
The matter was adjourned to September.
