Walkford murder trial: Teen admits he 'did nothing' to help victim Edward Reeve after fatal attack
A TEENAGER accused of murdering a man in Walkford told a jury he did nothing to help after leaving him “dying in his cold house” on New Year's Eve.
The Christchurch youth (16) has admitted stabbing the victim three times but claims it was in self-defence after Edward Reeve (35) came at him with a dumbbell.
He has told a jury at Winchester Crown Court that a co-defendant from Bournemouth (17) inflicted the fatal injuries.
During cross-examination, prosecutor Riel Karmy-Jones QC showed the teen a picture of Mr Reeve’s stab wounds saying they were “consistent with being chased”.
The Christchurch youth said he had stabbed Mr Reeve twice in the leg and once in the back with a knife he found at the victim’s house.
The teen said he then watched as his co-accused stabbed Mr Reeve repeatedly, admitting that he had “done nothing to stop him” and was in a “state of shock”.
He said when they left, Mr Reeve was lying on the floor of his home in Heath Road.
He said he had not realised how badly he had been injured, saying: "I didn't know how serious it was at the time."
Ms Karmy-Jones told him: “You knew full well you had left Edward Reeve dying in that house, didn’t you?
“You left a man dying in his cold house and you did nothing to help him.”
The teen replied: “I did nothing, no.”
CCTV presented to the jury showed the two teens outside Walkford Stores shortly after the attack “fist-bumping” each other, and the Christchurch teen laughing.
He admitted that they had been “full of adrenaline” but denied telling three girls, who had been at Mr Reeve’s house earlier with the teens, that they had killed him.
Other CCTV footage showed the youths later the same night in Christchurch, with the Bournemouth teen threatening a man in the street with what Ms Karmy-Jones called a “great big knife”.
She asked the Christchurch teen: “Is that the knife that was used to stab Mr Reeve?”
He said he had not seen the weapon despite being shown standing next to the Bournemouth teen.
Referring to his claim that he had acted in self-defence when he stabbed Mr Reeve, she told him: “The whole story is nonsense isn’t it? What you did went well beyond what was necessary to defend yourself.”
She said the youths had “planned” the attack and later posed for a photo together at Hinton Admiral train station, adding: “You and [the Bournemouth teen] together; a bond. You’ve been acting together, you planned it together.
“Brothers forever in the same gang.”
The teen answered quietly: “No.”
The Christchurch youth has pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to possessing a knife. He has admitted stabbing Mr Reeve but said it was in self-defence.
The Bournemouth youth has pleaded not guilty to murder and not guilty to carrying a blade.
The trial continues.
