Wireless Guide News

Day four of the Preston Strong murder trial ended Wednesday afternoon with Jeff Strohm, a custodian of records for Sprint Nextel Communications, testifying that Strong’s cell phone used signals from two cell towers located near Dr. Satinder Gill’s home the day he was murdered.

Strong faces two counts of first-degree murder, one count of kidnapping, one count of armed robbery, one count of burglary, two counts of aggravated assault and one count of attempted arson in the Yuma physician’s murder.

Under questioning from prosecutor William Katz, of the Yuma County Attorney’s Office, Strohm told the court that the phone company’s cell tower data indicates that from 3:08 p.m. to 6:37 p.m. on Nov. 1, 2007, calls made from Strong’s cell phone connected to the nearby Sprint cell towers, located at 3150 W. 32nd St. and 2540 W. 20th St.

Katz asked if it were possible for Strong to have made calls from Gill’s residence with his phone connecting to one cell tower and ending the call on a different tower without ever leaving the residence.

“Yes,” Strohm said. “It is possible without movement.”

In explaining how cell phone towers operate, Strohm said a cell phone is constantly searching for the “strongest signal” and that the strongest signal is usually determined by how far away it is from the closest cell tower.

Based on his observations of havin…………… continues on Yuma Sun