Eight persons including a pastor have deposed in the the second phase of the trial in triple murder case involving Australian Missionary Graham Stuart Staines and his two minor sons which began at the Khurda District and Sessions court.

The next hearing was today posted for last week of October. The court has posted the next hearing date to October 28, 29 and 30, CBI counsel Kalicharan Mishra told reporters.
A total of eight persons including Staines driver and pastor of Manoharpur Church have already deposed in the CBI designated court here during the two-day trial. All the witnesses informed the court that the miscreants had set fire to the vehicle where Staines and his two sons were sleeping on the January 22 night in 1999.

The defense lawyer Bana Bihari Mohanty, however, insisted upon deposition of Gladys Staines, the widow of the Australian Missionary. "We feel that Gladys Staines statement is vital in the case," Mohanty said during hearing.