‘I watched Rolex robbers gun down my wife’

The 59-year-old told St Albans Crown Court that he was shot at with a handgun as he charged at the robber, who had attacked his family. He said he later rammed the car carrying the gunman and his accomplice during a high-speed chase following the attack in Hoddesdon in August 2000.

Jason James, 29, and Daniel Whyte, 24, both from Ealing, west London, deny murdering Giuseppina Martorana after allegedly following the couple home from a shopping trip to Harrods in Knightsbridge.

Mr Martorana told the court he first noticed the men after getting out of his series 7 BMW car after returning home from the trip to Harrods, where he and his wife had been looking for silver rings to mark their 25th wedding anniversary.

He said he had been eating ice-cream with his wife at a McDonald's restaurant near his home, from where he believed the thieves had tailed them.

Standing in the witness box, Mr Martorana described how the events of the fateful day unfolded before his eyes.

He told the court that as he pulled up on to the driveway of their 750,000 home, he noticed a car parked "unusually" around the corner from his house.

As he and his 46-year-old wife removed their shopping from the boot of their car, Mr Martorana told the court he and his wife noticed "two black, tall, slim men" walking towards them. His wife had made the comment: "I wonder what these two want."

Mr Martorana said: "As the men approached, the next thing I realised someone had grabbed me from behind. Within a split second, I felt my watch come off. I was dazed.

"I felt someone was on top of me and I felt my watch going," he told the jury. "I then heard my wife screaming. My reaction was to try to protect myself.

"One of the men said, ‘I’ve got a gun’ and then I saw the gun being fumbled between the two.

"I naturally turned around as my wife was screaming. She ran around the car to get away. They must have chased her and within seconds I heard a gunshot. At that point, the man holding me let go and ran off.

"I went around to the right of my car and saw my wife. She was just falling," said Mr Martorana. The court heard that, on hearing the commotion from inside the house, Mr Martorana’s son, Steven, 18, and his girlfriend, Isabella Agnes, 19, came out of the house to help and were both shot in the chest.

Mr Martorana said: "Almost seconds after that first gunshot, Steven came flying out of the door and shouted, ‘What the f*****g hell is going on?’.

"As he said that, another shot was fired and he just collapsed in front of the door. The man who fired the gun was pointing it straight at Steven. The gun was like the one used in the film Deerhunter, where they are playing Russian roulette."

He added: "I was in a bit of a daze, not comprehending what was going on. Bella followed Steven out, behind him, and I was moving towards the front door to try to push Bella back in to protect her.

"I thought I was dreaming. I thought, ‘This isn’t happening’. As I pushed her back, I heard another shot. I wasn’t sure who had been hit, me or Bella. We both fell to the hallway floor, and I looked at Bella and saw her motionless.

"I turned around and I could see the second man who had fired the gun leaning over my wife. He was straddling her. My wife was just lying there. He was pulling the Rolex watch off her, and when I saw this I immediately went for him. I thought I could jump on him."

As Mr Martorana raced towards the gunman, the attacker turned and pointed the weapon at him before fleeing the scene.

After attempting to dial 999, Mr Martorana went after the robbers in his car.

He told the court that as they stopped at a roundabout he rammed the back of their car, but the men escaped and he returned to alert the police.

Mrs Martorana died of her wounds three weeks after the attack. Steven Martorana and Ms Agnes recovered.

James and Whyte both deny murder, attempted murder and robbery.

The case continues.