'He did it' says girlfriend

The girlfriend of Richard Cazaly, the suspect in the Abigail Witchalls stabbing who later killed himself, has told police she is convinced he was guilty of the attack.

Vanessa McKenzie told detectives she fled Britain to her native Australia in fear for her life because of his strange behaviour after the incident.

She said Cazaly stopped short of admitting the attack, but told her "he might have done it". He also warned her he might not be able to control himself, adding: "I can no longer guarantee your safety."

Police say the gardener is their prime suspect for the attack which left the 26-year-old mother paralysed from the neck down.

However, detectives are keeping an open mind as there is compelling circumstantial evidence, which they have not revealed, about another key suspect.

Detectives hope bloodstains recovered from the two main suspects will reveal the identity of the man who stabbed Mrs Witchalls on 20 April as she walked her 21-month-old son Joseph in the village of Little Bookham, Surrey.

DNA tests are being carried out on a pair of trousers belonging to Cazaly, 23, who left the village on the day police were due to interview Mrs Witchalls in hospital.

Forensic experts are also examining stains on a door knob and the steering wheel of a car belonging to a 25-year-old man who was arrested in connection with the attack but released when Mrs Witchalls did not pick him out of a video identity parade.

Detectives hope to show a photograph of Cazaly to Mrs Witchalls this week. They say they have to show her the image in a controlled way as if it was to be presented as evidence in court. A source said: "We have to be sure."

Cazaly, who took an overdose after driving to Scotland, left three short suicide notes. In one he wrote: "I'm terribly sorry. I must be two people. I can't remember. I must have done it."

Police say the remarks are inconclusive as they do not mention the attack.

Mrs Witchalls's husband Benoit has, meanwhile, spoken for the first time of his pride in her determination to pull through.

She was expected to die when she arrived in hospital. However, she has astounded medical experts by not only surviving but also reporting sensation in her shoulders, arms and legs.

Mr Witchalls, a 26-year-old engineer, told the BBC Crimewatch programme: "She's a remarkable character. I think I've had a crash course in spinal injury, and you just can't tell anything for the first month. It's a case of wait and see really, but she's still got her smile which is very comforting to see.

"We feel very lucky and blessed because she is fully present as herself, it's just great to see."

Crimewatch will show a reconstruction of the attack tonight.

Det Supt Adrian Harper of Surrey Police said the force had received more than 700 calls from the public, but it still needed help in providing what he described as the "final piece of the puzzle".