Man, 80, killed neighbour, 76, after 'long dispute'

A 76-year-old man died after an 80-year-old neighbour hit him over the head "again and again" with a hammer then stabbed him with a large kitchen knife, a trial has been told.

Peter Kindell attacked John Jones at the housing complex for over-60s where they lived in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, on 3 January, a jury heard.

On Tuesday, prosecutor Miranda Moore KC told Aylesbury Crown Court how the two men had been involved in a long-running dispute over smoking and noise at the Silverdale Close complex as she outlined the prosecution case again, in front of a new jury after Monday's jury was dismissed.

Mr Kindell, who sat in the dock accompanied by nurses, denies murder.

Outlining the prosecution case on Tuesday, Miss Moore said Mr Kindell was charged with murder and there was "absolutely no doubt or dispute" that he "unlawfully" killed Mr Jones.

She said jurors would have to decide whether Mr Kindell was guilty of murder or manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility.

A manslaughter charge has not been put to Mr Kindell at the trial.

In her opening of the case, the prosecuting counsel said lawyers representing the defendant were arguing that at the time of the killing he had an "abnormality of mental functioning".

She said they would claim this provided him with an "explanation" for the attack, and meant he was guilty of manslaughter not murder.

"This isn't one of those cases where you are trying to consider 'whodunnit'," she said.

"You are trying to consider 'whydunnit'."

She indicated that jurors would hear evidence from specialists who had examined Mr Kindell.

Miss Moore argued there was a "logical reason" for the attack.

"Mr Jones and Mr Kindell had a long-running dispute," she told jurors.

"This dispute went back over two years.

"Mr Kindell didn't like Mr Jones living in the flat below him.

"Mr Jones was a smoker - Mr Kindell objected to smoke coming into his windows."

She said Mr Jones, who had two sons and lived alone, had complained to the managers of the complex about Mr Kindell being "noisy".

Miss Moore said Mr Kindell was interested in music, had a "sort of home recording studio", and "played very loud music".

"This was not some spontaneous aberration of a troubled mind," she added.

"This actually had some element of planning and research."

She said Mr Kindell had done an internet check on how long CCTV was retained in the block of flats where they lived and carried out an internet search on "sentence for murder".

Miss Moore also said Mr Kindell had "laid in wait" for Mr Jones in an "out of sight" spot.

She said Mr Kindell hit Mr Jones "over the head, again and again" with a hammer.

Two women neighbours, Yvonne Ryan and Denise Heskey, had gone to Mr Jones' aid and Mr Kindell "ran off", she added.

One of the women had called 999 - and Mr Jones had been able to speak to an emergency services operator.

Miss Moore told jurors: "Mr Jones said 'I walked in the door and went to go into my flat and this bloke from upstairs started hitting me with a hammer'."

She added that the dead man had told the call handler: "He [the defendant] said I had attacked him for the last two years... I haven't attacked him at all... I don't have anything to do with him."

The prosecutor said Mr Kindell, who had gone upstairs to his flat, then returned with a large kitchen knife - and stabbed Mr Jones in the chest.

"One single blow," she said.

"Effectively killing Mr Jones there and then."

Miss Moore said the 999 call was being made when Mr Jones was stabbed.

She told jurors what the recording of the call had picked up.

"A female voice says 'what have you got?'," said the prosecutor.

"Then, 'no', 'no', 'no'.

"Then screaming."

The trial had originally started on Monday, but on Tuesday Judge Jonathan Cooper discharged the jury.

A second jury was sworn in and the trial started again from the beginning with the prosecution outlining its case for a second time.

Jurors are due to begin hearing evidence on Wednesday.

The trial is expected to end later this month.

Judge Jonathan Cooper told jurors that Mr Kindell was sitting with nurses who had come to "support him".

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