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The ex-girlfriend of the man accused of killing Kristin Smart testified in court that she was kept away from the backyard where investigators claim Smart's remains were buried.
The woman, identified as "Angie Doe," dated the suspect, Paul Flores, for about two years starting in 2003. She testified in San Luis Obispo Superior Court on Tuesday that Flores and his father, Ruben Flores, told her to stay out of the backyard when she tried to enter it.
Doe said she was in the backyard "just to look around" and tried to pick an avocado from a tree there, The Daily Mail reported.
Kristin Smart who disappeared in 1996 and Paul Flores, prime suspect in the disappearance, appearing in Superior Court in Torrance with his attorney in 2006. (AP/Getty Images)
"I don’t remember if it was Mr. Flores or Ruben, but they direct me away from the avocado trees," the 39-year-old told the court. "They told me to come around the house and get away from that area."
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Paul and Ruben Flores stand accused of Smart’s disappearance and slaying in 1996. Prosecutors have alleged that Ruben helped his son bury Smart’s body in his backyard.
Doe testified that she did not know about Smart’s disappearance while she dated Flores, and she first spoke to police in February. She had, however, spoken to the Son of Susan – a website focused on the Smart case – and to Chris Lambert, the host of the podcast "Your Own Backyard" that also focused on the case.
Smart was last seen with Paul Flores while walking home from a party on May 25, 1996, when both were college freshmen. When the party ended around 2:30 a.m., Paul Flores walked with Smart, who was intoxicated, and one of Smart's friends back toward Smart's dorm, the outlet has reported.
Prosecutors say Paul Flores killed Smart after allegedly trying to rape her in his dorm room. The case went cold for more than two decades, but investigators searched Paul Flores’ home last year and arrested him in April.
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Prosecutors also claimed that blood was discovered under Ruben Flores' deck in an area where soil had been recently disturbed.
Witness testimony continued this week as part of a month-long preliminary hearing in the case, during which attorneys for the Ruben family tried to tie the case to Scott Peterson, who may have known Smart in college.
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At the conclusion of the hearing, Superior Court Judge Craig van Rooyen will rule whether prosecutors established probable cause to proceed with a trial, The San Luis Obispo reported.
Paul Flores has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
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