An octogenarian accused of murdering his wife has broken down crying as grainy video of a cold-case crime scene walk-through was played to a jury.
Aaron Govendir was in the dock for the second day of a six-week trial at the NSW Supreme Court after pleading not guilty to murdering wife Denise at their home in Sydney's Dover Heights nearly three decades ago.
He is accused of bludgeoning his wife to death in their bed and waiting until her body went cold to call triple zero on March 10, 1998.
The jury heard on Monday the now-83-year-old staged a fictitious, violent home invasion replete with cable ties and duct tape to cover up her murder after she asked him for a divorce.
But defence lawyer Brendan Green on Tuesday urged jurors to keep open minds and consider all evidence before deciding the elderly man's fate.
"You may find a natural inclination to want to find someone for the death of a mother," he told the jury.
"This is not a whodunnit. This is a criminal trial."
Mr Green referred to Govendir's explanation for how he found his wife after the alleged home invasion.
"He had a bright light shone at him, he freed himself from these bindings, he went upstairs and found Ms Govendir dead," the court heard.
Two exhibits were tendered into evidence - a map of the Dover Heights area in Sydney's ritzy eastern suburbs and a 28-minute silent video of the crime scene captured by police at the time of the murder.
Two minutes into the aired walk-through, Govendir, wearing a blue kippah, began to cry, grabbing tissues to wipe away tears, which prompted Justice Sarah McNaughton to order a brief break.
After the trial resumed, Govendir buried his head in his clasped hands on the dock as the remainder of the crime scene video played.
The camera zoomed in on a blood-stained blue bedsheet and blood splattered on the floor's beige carpet.
The video also showed cable ties and grey duct tape - objects that Govendir's lawyer argues were used to tie up Govendir and his wife by people who broke into the home.
The couple had been married for 30 years but their union was "plagued by arguments" and weathered a six-month separation, the prosecutor said on Monday.
Before her death on March 10, 1998, Ms Govendir, 53, had spoken to a solicitor about her marriage breaking down irretrievably and her wish to amicably divide their assets.
Her husband, then 55, had a stake in a company believed to be worth millions of dollars but she was focused on securing half of their family home, which they had previously discussed, the jury heard on Monday.
Govendir later admitted to having "a few affairs" with other women, the court was told.
Paramedics found Ms Govendir's cold body in a pool of blood with her feet cable-tied together.