Donna-Lee Donaldson Murder Trial
Forensic analyst details bloody signs someone was injured in Maitland’s home
Published:Thursday | October 9, 2025 | 12:12 AMTanesha Mundle/Staff Reporter
A Government forensic analyst testified yesterday that an individual was injured inside Constable Noel Maitland’s apartment in July 2022.
A bloodstained entrance mat and two kitchen knives hidden in a flower pot were among the analyst’s observations inside Maitland’s apartment – eight days after his girlfriend vanished. The court heard on Tuesday that the mat was tested and had diluted blood.
Two bloodstained left-foot shoes – one Crocs slipper and one Puma sneaker – were also found inside the apartment.
The expert witness, who visited the Chelsea Manor apartment in St Andrew on July 21 with a team of officers, testified yesterday that based on her observations, she formed the opinion that someone had been injured and that that person’s blood was on the curtain in the living/dining room.
The analyst said she deemed the drapes highly important to the case during her testimony in the Home Circuit Court, where the constable is being tried for the July 13, 2022 murder of Donna-Lee Donaldson. He is also on trial for preventing the lawful burial of a corpse.
The 24-year-old social media personality and customer service representative, who was reported missing on October 13, had left her home on July 11 with Maitland and last spoke to relatives on July 12 while at his apartment.
According to the witness, who started her evidence-in-chief on Tuesday, among the items observed was a black suitcase in the living/dining area, which contained two panties and a size six dress. A baby carrier was seen on top of the suitcase.
She also testified that among the furniture seen in the living room was a brown leatherette couch.
Additionally, she noted that an air freshener was plugged in the western wall close to the couch, and that an open packet of air freshener was seen on top of a brown barrel.
“The scent was noticeable throughout the living/dining area,” she recalled.
The witness also remembered observing that one of the three swing bar guard locks on the door to the living room was broken and had a missing piece. However, she said there was no evidence of forced entry to the apartment.
According to the witness, a point of interest in the kitchen was that the bin was empty and there was hardly any food in the fridge.
“There was a mark on the floor in front of the sink, depicting an empty space where something was previously located,” she testified.
On the balcony, the witness said she saw a multicoloured mat hanging over the railing, along with a flower pot containing two kitchen knives and an empty Dragon Stout bottle.
Asked why the mat was of special interest, she said it appeared out of place.
Before leaving that day, she said she collected swabs and samples.
“Our protocol is to collect swabs and samples that may be of probative value, and to direct investigators to bring in any evidence we may deem highly important to a case,” she said.
The witness will continue her evidence today before Justice Leighton Pusey.