After implicating her former lover for the killing of Mohammed Raja, Hoogstraten's ex-fiance then said she had lied.

The judge subsequently banned Tanaka Sali's evidence and also that of another key witness, Michaal Abou Hamdan.

Mr Hamdan said Hoogstraten asked him to find someone to murder Mr Raja and another man.

When Tanaka first spoke to police, she said Hoogstraten told her: "Hamdan's a grass. He's as good as dead."

She also said Robert Knapp was introduced as Hoogstraten's "hitman".

She agreed to testify but, after coming into money, she retracted her statement and refused to testify.

After appearing penniless when she split with the millionaire, Tanaka said an aunt and friends had given her money.

Mr Justice Newman said she was no longer a reliable witness.

Tanaka, 19, left Hoogstraten's home after she had accused her lover of domestic violence.

In April, she was interviewed by the police. Her statement helped point the finger at Hoogstraten for Mr Raja's death and gave credence to Mr Hamdan's claims.

She confirmed her claims under oath away from the jury during legal wrangling to establish whether Mr Hamdan's evidence could be heard by the jury. The judge then ruled his statement could be read.

However, on Sunday, May 12, she informed solicitor Andreas Serghis she wanted to retract her statement and said she lied previously. The court heard she instructed the retraction to be faxed to Hoogstraten's solicitors.

The following day, away from the jury, the judge demanded to know if she was "playing with the court".

Tanaka was recalled to give evidence on Tuesday, May 14, but refused.

During questioning by the judge and prosecutor David Waters QC, she claimed she did not know whether the statements she had signed were correct.

She said: "I was being bombarded with questions. I had a swollen eye and was upset so I cannot recall whether all the answers were truthful."

Knapp had not been introduced as a hitman but she refused to explain why she swore to it before.

The judge remarked: "The witness, who on a prior occasion had appeared open, had been transformed into a guarded witness.

"Apart from the unimpressive manner in which she answered those questions, they are of course in flat contradiction to the evidence which she gave under oath."

He concluded the evidence she gave previously had been truthful and therefore her retraction was false.

The judge said he would ask the Attorney General to consider whether a contempt of court had taken place or if Tanaka had attempted to pervert the course of justice.

Again the judge ruled Mr Hamdan's statements should be read. But the following morning, after reconsidering the evidence, he decided they should not be read.

When the prosecution closed, Hoogstraten's barrister Richard Ferguson QC called for the case to be thrown out due to lack of evidence.

The judge ruled otherwise and the jury saw Hoogstraten for the killer he is.