Sergeant accused of tampering with wife's parachute will face retrial after jury fails to reach verdict

Emile Cilliers, 37, of the Royal Army Physical Training Corps, denies attempting to murder his wife
Undefined23 November 2017

An Army sergeant is to face a retrial on charges of attempting to murder his wife by tampering with her parachute after the first jury failed to reach verdicts.

Emile Cilliers, 37, of the Royal Army Physical Training Corps, denied throughout a seven-week trial at Winchester Crown Court two charges of attempted murder and a third count of damaging a gas fitting.

Victoria Cilliers, a highly-experienced parachuting instructor, suffered near-fatal injuries after both her main and reserve parachutes failed

She was taking part in a jump at the Army Parachute Association at Netheravon, Wiltshire, on Easter Sunday, April 5 2015.

Victoria (left) with husband Emile Cilliers who will face a retrial
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The 42-year-old claimed "everything went black" during the fall.

Prosecutors also claimed the defendant made another attempt to kill her by deliberately causing a gas leak in the family home days before the fall.

The jury were today dismissed after failing to reach a verdict.

Mr Cilliers will face a retrial, the court was told.

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