Suspect admits murder of man found in stream

A man has admitted murder after a 21-year-old was discovered dead in a stream with a cut throat and two stab wounds.

The body of Owen Fairclough was found near Risley Lane in Breaston, Derbyshire, on 23 June 2023 by a group of teenagers.

Part way through a trial at Derby Crown Court, Jack Towell, 22, of Castle Boulevard in Nottingham, pleaded guilty to murder and possession of an offensive weapon.

David Oswald, 31, of Granville Square in Birmingham, and two other men, who cannot be named for legal reasons, deny Mr Fairclough's murder.

The court heard Towell will be sentenced at the end of the trial.

The jury was previously told Mr Fairclough arrived in Breaston on 21 June and was met by Towell, who "lured him" to a "secluded spot" where Mr Oswald and 'Man A' were "lying in wait for him".

On Wednesday, Man A told the jury although he, Towell, and Mr Oswald travelled together by taxi to Manorleigh, in Breaston, Towell then went off alone after receiving a call and going to meet somebody,

When Man A's defence counsel Clive Stockwell KC asked if Towell said who he was meeting, or what for, he said “no”.

He told the court after Towell left, he and Mr Oswald walked 10 to 15 minutes to a picnic bench in Hills Road, where Man A said he had arranged to meet a customer to sell drugs.

After the sale, he said he and Mr Oswald stayed at this spot, taking drugs until Towell rejoined them, and they then got a lift back to Man A's house.

Man A told the court he did not know of Mr Fairclough, of Long Eaton in Derbyshire, did not know of any plan to stab him or have any involvement in his death.

When asked about a samurai sword and "Rambo" knife he possessed - which the prosecution later suggested were in a bag Man A was carrying in Breaston the night Mr Fairclough was killed - he told the court he had them as ornaments.

When Mr Stockwell asked if he had ever used a samurai sword or "Rambo" knife to harm anybody, he said "no".

Man A added: "I am a peaceful person and a drug dealer."

The trial continues.

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