Mother-of-two caught on CCTV desperately trying to flag down bus moments before she was killed by a 'sex stalker'

Caroline Coyne, 28, was walking home from a party when she tried to wave down a bus shortly after 1am in Nottingham

Just moments later she was allegedly attacked and killed by Carl Powell, 23

Mother-of-two found a few hours later at 8.45am on July 23 last year lying dead in a passageway between two houses

Murdered: Caroline Coyne, 28, was killed on her way home from a family party in Nottingham

A mother-of-two’s last moments alive were captured on CCTV as she tried to wave down a bus shortly before she was murdered by a sex attacker, a court has heard.



Caroline Coyne, 28, is seen standing in the middle of the road waving her arms for the bus to stop before stepping out the way as it drives past.



Just minutes later, Ms Coyne was allegedly grabbed by Carl Powell, 23, and battered to death as she fought to resist him.

He denies murdering the young mother.

A jury at Nottingham Crown Court were shown the brief clip of the mother of two waving down the bus on Porchester Road in Nottingham shortly after 1am on July 23 last year.



The court heard the driver of the out-of-service bus, which was taking staff home after they had finished their shifts, had to brake and swerve to prevent his vehicle colliding with Ms Coyne.



Police later traced motorists on the same road who recalled seeing Ms Coyne being followed by a man who the prosecution claim killed her.



Prosecutor Stuart Rafferty QC told the court that minutes after trying to stop the bus a nearby resident was woken by a women shouting 'get off me'.

Ms Coyne's body was later found in a foetal position in a passageway between two houses at nearby Thorneywood Mount, St Ann’s, Nottingham at 8.45am that morning.



A post mortem showed Ms Coyne, of Top Valley, Nottingham, died from head injuries. A concrete lump thought to be the murder weapon was found next to her body.



She had been gripped round the neck, shoulders and breasts. Defence wounds to her hands indicated she had fought for her life.



Mr Rafferty said Ms Coyne, the mother of two boys aged seven and five, was killed because her killer lost his temper when she did not comply to his demands for sex.

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Plea for help: Ms Coyne was captured on a bus CCTV camera trying to wave it down just moments before she was allegedly killed by Carl Powell, 23

The court heard Ms Coyne had spent the evening prior to her death drinking at a family birthday party at her mother’s house.



Mr Rafferty said: 'She was the life and soul of the party, organising games for the guests,' adding that she was 'the worst for drink' when she left.

Jurors heard that around an hour before Ms Coyne was attacked she flagged down two special constables and got into the back of their marked police car. She asked the officers for a lift home but they refused.



Half an hour later she tried to flag down the bus.



Powell, from Carlton, Nottingham, was arrested almost a month after Ms Coyne's death for a sex attack on another woman.

Bus CCTV: The driver of the out-of-service bus was taking staff members home when he spotted Ms Coyne shortly after 1am

Dangerous: The driver claims he was forced to brake and swerve to prevent the bus from hitting Ms Coyne

The alleged victim - who can't be identified for legal reasons - claims she was walking home after a night out in Nottingham when Powell grabbed her by the throat and dragged her into college grounds and sexually assaulted her.



Powell denies the attack.



The court was told that Powell attacked his victims because he thought they would be easy targets because they had been drinking.



Mr Rafferty told the jury: 'Last summer, in 2011, on dates a month apart, two women were stalked and attacked late at night when each was alone and when each, the prosecution say, were identified as a potential target and when they may have been the worse for drink making them vulnerable.'

When questioned after his arrest Powell told police: 'I’ve no need to attack women because I can get them just like that.'

Powell denies the murder of Ms Coyne on July 23, 2011, and denies false imprisonment with intent to commit a sexual offence and sexual assault of the 21-year-old woman on August 24 last year.



The trial continues.