[ad_1]
A missing teenager was brutally stabbed to death 20 times by two of his friends, buried in a makeshift grave near a disused industrial estate and set alight, a murder trial has heard.
Kieran Williams’s body was found in a 2.4ft deep grave in Sunderland six weeks after he vanished last Easter.
Prosecutors allege he was knifed by Ben Cook, 19, and Louis Hackett, 20, in a ‘prolonged and sustained attack’, then buried in a grave by the Northern Spire bridge near the River Wear.
Jurors at Newcastle Crown Court were told that the suspects then texted Mr Williams after the killing, in what is claimed to be an apparent bid to cover their tracks.
Police initially arrested the two men on suspicion of kidnapping, but when fingerprints were found at the site, the suspects turned on each other and accused each other of the killing.
Kieran Williams (pictured), 18, was found dead in a makeshift grave in Sunderland
He was last seen on April 18 and on the same day had received messages from both the accused.
David Lamb KC, prosecuting, said Mr Williams had been in touch with the accused before going to meet them.
He said: ‘The prosecution case is this pattern of contact leading to Kieran leaving his mum’s address and walking to the area where he was killed is indicative that this was a planned attack by these two defendants and they were in it together as part of a joint plan.’
Mr Lamb said that after allegedly murdering Mr Williams, Hackett texted him saying ‘are you taking the p***, where are you, waiting about like a daft ****’, then added ‘f*** ya, don’t speak to me again’.
Mr Lamb told the court: ‘Of course he didn’t because Kieran was dead.’
Cook also had messaged Mr Williams on Facebook asking ‘you back yet mate’.
Mr Williams, who lived in supported accommodation, was at his mother Tracey William’s house on April 18.
She said went out for food around 5.30pm and when she returned later on he was not there and she never saw her son again.
The 18-year-old disappeared on Monday, April 18, and his body was found on June 2, after extensive police searches. Pictured: Police at the burial site
On May 31 last year, police discovered a grave that had been dug in a wooded area near a disused industrial estate by the Northern Spire bridge in Sunderland, near the River Wear.
The court heard on May 1 both of the accused returned to the burial site. Hackett also returned on May 2 and Cook went back a day later.
Mr Lamb said: ‘On June 2, about five weeks after the murder, Kieran’s decomposed body was discovered by a police officer and her police dog, buried in a grave in an area of heavy undergrowth in a disused industrial landscape.’
His body was examined by a pathologist who said he had suffered at least 20 stab wounds, including three to the front of his chest, two to his right torso, seven to his neck and a number of other wounds to his limbs.
One of the stab wounds had penetrated a membrane surrounding his heart, another penetrated his aorta and two entered his liver.
Mr Williams died from blood loss as a result of a ‘prolonged and sustained attack’.
The court heard an attempt had been made to set Mr Williams on fire in the grave but the fire damage was limited to his clothes not his body.
Mr Lamb said the grave was 2.4ft deep and it ‘did not resemble a hurriedly dug or poorly constructed grave’.
On May 31 last year the police discovered a grave that had been dug in a wooded area near a disused industrial estate by the Northern Spire bridge in Sunderland, near the River Wear (pictured)
He said while it can’t be said with certainty the grave was dug before he was killed, there was evidence of pre-planning.
Mr Lamb said: ‘It was in a secluded area and access to vehicles would not have been possible. In short, this was not an easy place to get to. There were numerous spade marks in the sides and base of the grave. It was dug in clay soil and would’ve taken a considerable effort to dig out.’
Attempts had been made to cover the grave with leaves, sticks and branches.
A shovel, spade and fork were later recovered by police on the bank of the River Wear.
When Hackett was interviewed, he told police Mr Williams was ‘like a brother to him’ and said he ‘would give him the clothes off his back’.
Hackett also called Mr Williams a ‘class lad’ that he had a good relationship with him and the three boys were friends.
Police inquiries had initially led to the arrest of Cook and Hackett on suspicion of kidnap.
Hackett denied any involvement but when a forensic archeologist found his fingerprint in clay on the grave and within the grave, he changed his story, saying he and Cook had gone to the deposition site and met Mr Williams.
Cook, 19, of Fordfield Road, Sunderland, and Hackett, 20, of of Fordenbridge Square, Sunderland, deny murder at Newcastle Crown Court (pictured)
He claimed Cook argued with Mr Williams and Cook produced a knife and stabbed him numerous times.
He claimed he tried to pull Cook off him but Mr Williams collapsed. Hackett said Cook asked him to help him after it became clear Mr Williams was dead and said he was ‘not thinking straight’ so he helped Cook bury him.
Cook, who also changed his initial story, said Hackett had attacked Mr Williams and stabbed him multiple times. Cook also claimed Hackett had then threatened him with the same knife and told him to move the body.
Cook added Hackett set fire to Mr Williams’s body then covered it with leaves and shrubbery. He said he was then told to leave and to ring Mr Williams later as if nothing was wrong.
David Lamb KC, prosecuting, said: ‘We say each man made his calculation before throwing his co-accused under the bus as a final throw of the dice to get out of their own involvement in a murder which, we say, both men were involved and in respect of which they were in it together.’
Cook, 19, of Fordfield Road, Sunderland, and Hackett, 20, of of Fordenbridge Square, Sunderland, deny murder.
The trial at Newcastle Crown Court continues.
[ad_2]
Source link
