Convicted murderer Rudy Guede says he believes Amanda Knox is guilty
(CBS/AP) PERUGIA, Italy - Rudy Hermann Guede, the first man convicted in the murder of Amanda Knox's roommate, testifed Monday that he believes she and her ex-boyfriend are guilty, an accusation that prompted the American student to say she was "shocked and anguished."
"He knows we weren't there," Knox said emotionally moments after her accuser had left the courthouse.
The testimony by Guede, a 24-year-old immigrant from the Ivory Coast, was closely watched in the packed courtroom in Perugia. He had been called as a witness for the prosecution in the appeals trial of Knox and Raffaele Sollecito, her Italian ex-boyfriend and co-defendant.
Knox and Sollecito were convicted for the Nov. 1, 2007, slaying of British exchange student Meredith Kercher, whose body was found in a pool of blood in the apartment she and Knox shared in Perugia.
Prosecutors claimed in Knox's first trial that Guede, Knox and Sollecito killed Kercher in what had begun as a sexual game.
Taking the stand, Guede confirmed the contents of a letter he wrote to his lawyers last year, which ends with a direct accusation to Knox and Sollecito. In the March 2010 letter, which was read out loud in court, Guede wrote that he had nothing to do with the "horrible murder of the splendid and wonderful Meredith Kercher by Knox and Sollecito."
Guede is serving a 16-year-prison sentence for the murder. He was escorted in court by police in handcuffs.
Knox and Sollecito were convicted of sexual assault and murder in separate proceeding. She was sentenced to 26 years in prison, he to 25. Both have maintained they were at Sollecito's house the night of the murder. Their defense lawyers claim Guede was the killer and acted alone.
Complete coverage of Amanda Knox on Crimesider
