Wendy Mann murder: I'm too small to have strangled her, accused tells jury

Leroy Sterling, aged 63, told a jury he would not have been capable of overpowering his ex-partner Wendy Mann.

The 26-year-old was found dead at her flat in Chapel Street, West Bromwich on August 28, 2015. She is thought to have been killed the day before.

Under cross-examination at Wolverhampton Crown Court, Sterling was accused of killing her because he 'resented' her relationship with new lover Trevor Tyndale - who Sterling is also alleged to tried to kill by bludgeoning him with a hammer six weeks earlier.

Prosecutor Mr Mark Hayward said: "You were getting more and more resentful of Wendy's relationship with Trevor. She was moving on with her life."

Sterling replied: "If she wanted to move on with her life it was nothing to do with me."

Mr Hayward continued: "How did the fight start? What was it about?

"It was so fierce that you crushed her neck in the crook of your arm."

Sterling protested: "She was quite a big lady, look at my arms, they are the size of kids' arms."

The barrister said: "You were so furious with her you wanted to kill her. You did what you did to literally choke the life out of her."

The accused replied 'no'.

The trial had earlier heard from a medical expert who said Miss Mann may have received a blow to the head before being strangled.

The jury was also told how several calls were made from Sterling's phone to Miss Mann's at around 1am on August 27, just hours before she died, but the calls went unanswered.

Mr Hayward said: "What was so urgent you had to ring her at one in the morning?

"Did you think she had gone back to her flat with Trevor Tyndale?

"You rang time and time again to find out what was going on in that flat."

Sterling again said 'no'.

A further call to Miss Mann was made at 9.09am, this time from their son's.

The prosecution alleges it was Sterling who made the call while making his way to her flat. A figure was seen near his Guns Lane home on CCTV using a white phone, the same colour as their son's phone.

Mr Hayward said: "Did you think you would take that phone as she would pick it up thinking she would hear her little boy?

"She would never dream of not answering it."

Sterling denied using the phone and being the figure in the CCTV.

"I would not go out at that time and leave my kids in the house," he said.

The court was also told about inconsistencies in what Sterling told police about his altercation with Mr Tyndale upon his arrest and what he had said to the jury.

He told police Mr Tyndale had grabbed a knife from his kitchen but in his evidence to the jury said his love rival had brought the knife to his house.

Asked to explain why his account had changed, Sterling said his head was 'all over the place' following the incident.

Sterling denies murder and attempted murder.

The trial continues.