Stab wounds could be self-inflicted, court hears

Joanne Samak was found with six stab wounds, one penetrating her breast bone and hitting her heart

A woman who died after being found with six stab wounds at her home could have been responsible for her own injuries, a court has heard.

Ex-international hockey player Mohamed Samak, 42, has denied murdering his wife, 49-year-old Joanne Samak, after she died in Droitwich Spa on 1 July 2024.

Giving evidence at Worcester Crown Court on Wednesday, forensic pathologist Dr Alexander Kolar said "the idea that the wounds were self inflicted could not be ruled out".

He also said a third party could have been involved had she been restrained or unconscious at the time of the incident.

Discussing the initial post-mortem results and subsequent reports on Mrs Samak's death, Dr Kolar said she had suffered five wounds to her front and one to her side or back.

He said the biggest wound was the one to the chest in which the knife had gone through the breast bone and hit her heart, which he said had inflicted the most damage and had resulted in her death.

Dr Kolar also said Mrs Samak had suffered a number of other injuries on her body, such as bruises on her arm and some accidental bruising on her shins and ankles, as well as a blunt force injury.

During the post-mortem examination, no defence wounds, such as cuts and scrapes to the back of hands or arms were found, the court was told.

When asked to provide a conclusion, Dr Kolar said that due to the fact the wounds in her front were more or less in a straight line down her body and there were no defence wounds found then self inflicted wounds could not be ruled out.

He explained wounds inflicted by a "third party tended to be more haphazard" and the uniform nature of Mrs Samak's injuries meant self infliction was a possibility.

Overall, he said her wounds could have been self-inflicted or done by a third party, adding there was no concrete conclusion.

Police interviews

West Mercia Police's Det Con Tracey Ruff, who conducted the initial interviews with Mr Samak, said the defendant had told police he was worried about her mental health.

He told officers she had been stressed that she was going to lose her job and that he was worried about the amount she drank.

The court also heard about the moment in which he claimed he found her body face down on her bed.

After moving her body, Mr Sunak said he found the stab wounds and a knife sticking out of her stomach.

In his police interviews, he said he then tried to resuscitate her and gave her CPR, which was when he noticed the stab wound in her chest.