- Rahim Mohammadi, 40, is alleged to have strangled Lea Adri-Soejoko, 80
- She was discovered by police in a locked shed at Colindale allotments
- She had been due to appear at the allotment groups' AGM on February 27
- Police later found her body in a locked building the group used to store tools
Lea Adri-Soejoko, 80, was discovered by police in a locked shed at Colindale allotments in north London with a flex wrapped around her neck
An 80-year-old grandmother was strangled with a lawnmower cord in a 'cold-blooded' bid to cover up a shocking assault by a fellow allotment holder, a court has heard.
Lea Adri-Soejoko, 80, was discovered by police in a locked shed at Colindale allotments in north London with a flex wrapped around her neck.
Her family and friends had raised the alarm after she failed to turn up at an allotment society meeting on February 27 last year.
The secretary of Colindale Allotment Association had suffered fractured ribs and bruises from being 'beaten up' by Rahim Mohammadi, jurors were told.
To stop her reporting the assault, he allegedly throttled her with the starter cord of a Mountfield lawnmower stored in the lock-up where she was found.
Mohammadi, 41, of Hackney, is on trial at the Old Bailey accused of murdering Mrs Adri-Soejoko.
Mohammadi, who lived in a homeless shelter in Hackney after fleeing persecution in Iran, was introduced to the allotments by the Freedom From Torture charity.
The organisation helps refugees and survivors of torture and brutality from war-torn countries, offering medical assessments to support asylum claims, counselling and gardening therapy for those with posttraumatic stress disorder.
Six plots are rented at Colindale every summer so victims can 'connect with nature and explore their experiences' in group therapy.
Prosecutor John Price QC told jurors that Mohammadi spent five hours at the allotment on the day of the killing and had been seen by two other plot holders.
As a committee member, he had his own key to the mower shed which had been locked from the outside with Mrs Adri-Soejoko's body in it, with her keys in her pocket.
Rahim Mohammadi, 41, of Hackney, (pictured) is on trial at the Old Bailey accused of murdering Mrs Adri-Soejoko
Lea Adri-Soejoko, 80, was found dead in a lock-up belonging to an allotment association of which she was secretary
Mr Price said the motive for the killing was to prevent the detection of a 'very serious' assault on the elderly victim.
He said: 'Whereas the killing of Mrs Adri-Soejoko was carried out with cold-blooded deliberation, the other blunt force injuries speak of a more spontaneous use of violence.
'In a phrase, Mrs Adri-Soejoko was beaten up. That in turn does point, it is submitted, to a motive for her murder - to avoid detection for a shocking and very serious assault on a vulnerable old lady.'
The lawyer said it suggested the victim knew her attacker and would have been able to identify them.
Mr Price said Mrs Adri-Soejoko had a 'passion' for her allotment, which was a short walk from the home where she lived with her granddaughter.
Despite her age, she was said to be in very good health and led a 'full and active life'.
The defendant had had a plot on the allotment since 2013 and was also a 'very keen and active' user of the site, jurors heard.
Mr Price told jurors that DNA from the defendant was found on the part of lawnmower cord he allegedly used to strangle her.
Mohammadi denies murder.
The Old Bailey heard she was 'wary' of Mohammadi, and he was known for his 'threatening, intimidating, aggressive and sometimes even physically violent behaviour'.
Jurors were told how the pair 'clashed' during a 'notorious' meeting of the Allotment Association in September 2016 when she told him to 'shut up'.
The prosecution claim Mohammadi strangled Mrs Adri-Soejoko with 'cold-blooded deliberation' after rendering her defenceless with an initial assault.
She suffered bruising to her arms, left wrist, left shoulder, right hand and left knee, bruising and abrasions to the face, a fracture of the spine at the base of the neck and two fractures to the fifth and ninth ribs on the left side.
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