Boy denies murder over the fatal stabbing of man, 35

JURY HEARS RECORDING OF A PHONE CALL CAPTURING THE ATTACK

- By TOM MACK

THE moment a 35-year-old man was stabbed to death at a home by a boy has been played to a murder trial jury.

The man could be heard on the recording demanding a phone from the boy’s mum.

The boy, who was 16 at the time of the incident in April and has since turned 17, is on trial for murder at Leicester Crown Court.

The jury was sworn in yesterday and prosecutor Mary Prior KC then opened the case.

She played the jurors CCTV from the house next door, which recorded sound from inside the property as the incident took place.

The jurors heard that the boy, who cannot be named due to his age, has now admitted he was the one who stabbed Louis Howard in the heart, but denies murder.

The jury heard Mr Howard had gone to an address in Braunstone Frith, Leicester, at about 10.15pm on April 9, knocked on the door and been allowed into the house. Once inside, Mr Howard, who did not have a phone, tried to get the boy’s mother to lend him her phone, which she refused.

He is said to have grabbed at the pockets of her coat and she is heard on the recording shouting: “Get off. Get off my pocket.”