Court hears details of final texts sent from Grace Millane to her friend, saying she 'clicked' with accused during date

Jurors were told about intimate photos found on the murder accused’s phone.

Just hours before she died, Grace Millane messaged one of her best friends in Dubai telling her she was on a date with an oil company manager and they had “clicked”.

Ms Millane was inside an Auckland pub, The Bluestone Room with the defendant at the time of the messaging. The pair were on a Tinder date.

Ameena Ashcroft’s evidence was read out at the High Court in Auckland today, where a 27-year-old man who has name suppression, is on trial for the murder of Ms Millane.

She told how she had received a series of messages from a clearly intoxicated Ms Millane who said “he was like 'it’s birthday tomorrow, we are getting smashed'".

Ms Ashcroft said they often talked about boys while at university together but she had no reason to believe Ms Millane had any unusual sexual practices and told the court that she didn’t believe Ms Millane was into BDSM.

Earlier today, the High Court jury in the case was shown CCTV footage of the Tinder date between Ms Millane and the man accused of her murder.

The jury heard detail about the final hours of the young visitor’s life.

They met early evening on December 1 last year at SkyCity and embarked on a night of drinking at a number of central city establishments.

Ms Millane's parents were in court to see her last movements alive caught on camera.

Cameras at The Bluestone Room show Ms Millane and the defendant kissing and cuddling and obviously getting along well together.

At one point when she goes to the toilets the defendant is seen going through her handbag, putting it back on her seat before she returns.

They spend a little more than an hour there before making their way over the road to the CityLife Hotel where the defendant was renting a room.

The British backpacker’s parents were in the High Court at Auckland to see her last movements alive caught on camera.

Ms Millane is last seen alive leaving the lift at CityLife at 9.41pm, heading towards the defendant's room about four hours after they first met.

The Crown says she was strangled to death some hours later in that room.

The defence team argue her death was an accident after he applied pressure to her neck during rough sex with her consent and encouragement.

Her body was discovered in a suitcase buried in bush in the Waitakere Ranges eight days later.

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