British Banker In Court Over Suitcase Murders

The British banker accused of murdering two Indonesian women has appeared in court in Hong Kong.

Rurik Jutting is charged with killing Sumarti Ningsih, 23, on 27 October and Seneng Mujiasih, 29, on 1 November last year.

The Cambridge graduate called police to his 31st-floor apartment in the Wan Chai district where they found the bodies of the two women.

Ms Sumarti's was discovered stuffed in a suitcase on the balcony.

Both she and Ms Seneng had suffered neck injuries and a knife was recovered at the scene.

In court on Thursday Jutting said "I do" when asked if he understood a list of charges but was otherwise expressionless.

Eastern Court magistrate Jason Wan adjourned the case until 8 May after prosecutors said they needed more time to file documents.

The trial is expected to go ahead at Hong Kong's High Court in July.

Jutting, 29, worked for Bank of America Merrill Lynch, although he is thought to have quit his job days before the killings.

In November he was deemed fit to enter a plea based on the results of psychiatric reports but has yet to do so.

At the time of their deaths the alleged victims were working in the city's red light district, earning money for their families back in Indonesia.

Both had originally gone to Hong Kong to work as domestic helpers.