Shocking footage shown to jury in trial of eight men accused of killing Haroon Jahan, Shazad Ali and Abdul Musavir last summer
A murder trial of eight men who are accused of deliberately driving into and killing three men who were trying to protect shops and houses from looters during the riots in Birmingham last summer has begun amid dramatic scenes that culminated in the public gallery being cleared.
Jurors in the trial were shown shocking footage of the moment the victims were flung into the air after being struck by a car. There were loud gasps from the public gallery at Birmingham crown court and family members sobbed as the CCTV footage from 10 August last year was played. A heated argument erupted in the public gallery on Thursday morning, leading to the judge, Mr Justice Flaux, ordering the court be cleared.
Prosecuting barrister Tim Spencer QC told Birmingham crown court that Haroon Jahan, 21, and Shazad Ali, 30, and his brother Abdul Musavir, 31, were hit by a Mazda car on Dudley Road during the riots in the Winson Green district of the city.
They had been trying to protect shops and homes from looters. Thousands attended their funerals and their families praised the community for its fortitude in remaining calm following their deaths.
The three victims were pronounced dead in hospital. In the hours leading up to their deaths, gangs had apparently rushed down the road and stolen a digger parked near to a police station with the intention of stealing a cash machine. In Birmingham city centre the previous evening, there had been widespread looting.
Spencer said: "They were killed in shocking circumstances. It would be very surprising if you did not find the circumstances of their deaths shocking. You need, I am afraid, to be prepared and shocked, ladies and gentlemen."
He said the defendants were in three separate cars, a Ford Fiesta, a Mazda and an Audi. The Audi could be seen in the CCTV footage swerving as it travels along the road, while the other two vehicles hold back.
Seconds later, an arm is extended from the driver's side of the Mazda. "Did you see the arm?" Spencer asked the jurors. "It is a signal. A signal to those in the Fiesta, particularly the driver, to go.
"The driving you have just seen was not chance. It was not accidental. It was deliberate and co-ordinated. It was the modern day equivalent of a chariot charge. And it was deadly."
Ryan Goodwin, 21, Shaun Flynn, 26, Juan Ruiz-Gaviria, 31, Joshua Donald, 27, Everton Graham, 30, Adam King, 24, Ian Beckford, 30, and Aaron Parkins, 18, all from the West Midlands, deny three counts of murder.
The trial continues.
Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2012/apr/19/birmingham-riots-murder-trial-footage
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