A cruise line worker allegedly stabbed to death by her jealous ex-boyfriend wanted to flee to Spain to escape him after he ‘trashed’ her house, a court heard today.
Cristina Ortiz-Lozano was killed in a ‘frenzied’ attack after being followed home from a Tinder date with another man by spurned lover Abdelaziz El Yechioui Ourzat, prosecutors said.
The pair had met at school in Spain and had been together for 12 years, but Miss Ortiz-Lozano dumped Ourzat in August 2019 when he was arrested for drink driving.
A jury heard how Ourzat, who worked as a baggage handler at Southampton docks, went on a rampage about her house following the break up, ripping light fixtures and radiators out of walls.
Today, Winchester Crown Court heard how Miss Ortiz-Lozano, 28, had asked her employers if she could move back to Spain and work for them from there, as she was fleeing her abusive ex.
She even showed her colleagues a video of her damaged house and a copy of the restraining order which prevented Ourzat, 30 and of Moroccan descent, from coming near her.
Cristina Ortiz-Lozano, 28, was killed in ‘frenzied’ attack after being followed home, court heard
Prosecutor Kerry Maylin read statements made to police by Miss Ortiz-Lozano’s co-workers in the aftermath of her killing.
Catia Ribeiro, who worked with her at Norwegian Cruise Line in Southampton, said she often talked with Miss Ortiz-Lozano about her boyfriend and described her as a ‘kind, friendly, smart and beautiful’ woman.
She said: ‘I didn’t know his name, but she referred to him as a big, tall man.
‘One day we were chatting in the kitchen in the office about our boyfriends, she showed me something on her phone.
‘It was a video showing a badly damaged house.
‘She seemed quite calm and told me this was caused by her boyfriend. She told me they had broken up.
‘It was a shocking amount of damage.’
Irene Porcel, another colleague at Norwegian, said: ‘She seemed a very strong person and knew what she wanted. She was determined and ambitious in life.
Police at the scene in Portswood, Southampton, Hants where Cristina Ortiz-Lozano was killed
‘She told me she was planning on asking for flexible working from the company and wanted to return to Spain.
‘She told me there was a specific reason for this. There had been a recent incident at her house when her boyfriend had completely trashed her house.
‘Then she showed me a letter which looked like a restraining order.
‘She said he had been drinking more than normal leading up to the incident
‘She didn’t want to know where he was or have anything to do with him.’
Her line manager Justine Marsh said Miss Ortiz-Lozano broke down in tears during a one-to-one meeting with her, when she asked for flexible working and told her about her boyfriend.
‘She briefly told me it was because of her ex-boyfriend and the police had become involved. She was in tears with me during this meeting.
‘She told me that she had been coming into work slightly later because she was afraid to walk in on her own.’
The case was being heard at Winchester Crown Court, which is currently undergoing repairs
A statement from her mother, Antonia Lozano-Molina, was read out to the court. She described how the pair had met at school, before living together in Spain, France and then in England.
The pair stayed in Liverpool and London before eventually settling down in Southampton.
Miss Lozano-Molina described Ourzat as a ‘good, polite man’ and that her daughter ‘appeared to be happy’.
She said she was unaware of any problems between them until the relationship ended in August.
In September 2019, Miss Ortiz-Lozano went on a date with a man she had met on Tinder named Vincente Breso-Biosca.
The court has been shown CCTV showing Ourzat following the pair while on their date, still wearing his work uniform of a blue shirt, black trousers and black tie with a dark rucksack on his back.
The prosecution say that he ‘hid in the shadows’ to avoid detection as he stalked them back to Miss Ortiz-Lozano’s house in Southampton before stabbing her 23 times with a knife in her kitchen.
Ourzat denies murder but has pleaded guilty to manslaughter by diminished responsibility.
The trial continues.