Yannick Cupido: Man killed over prank texts, court hears

A man murdered a 24-year-old over prank text messages claiming his friend had stabbed someone, a court heard.

O'Neal Joseph, 28, is accused of stabbing Yannick Cupido in Reading in the early hours of 14 February 2021.

The court heard he used a large kitchen knife to stab Mr Cupido, who died from a single wound to the chest, in the street.

Mr Joseph, of Amersham Road, Caversham, denies murder, claiming self-defence, at a trial at Reading Crown Court.

Reece Weatherburn, 23, of Nire Road, Caversham, denies two counts of assisting an offender by helping Mr Joseph in the aftermath.

The court heard on the night of 13 February, Mr Cupido had been in the flat of his co-defendant, when he sent text messages to Mr Weatherburn's ex-girlfriend.

The texts made out the 23-year-old had stabbed someone and was in trouble, which was untrue.

The concerned ex-girlfriend then alerted Mr Weatherburn's friend Mr Joseph who took the messages at face value.

The prosecution suggested Mr Joseph learned it was a prank, which caused an argument, and he intercepted Mr Cupido as he walked to his mother's house in Lower Caversham.

Matthew Walsh, prosecuting, said: "Mr Cupido wasn't making any apologies for what he'd done…so angry was Mr Joseph he went out to find Cupido and confront him taking with him the largest kitchen knife when he left the house.

"Having left with that knife the prosecution suggest to you he intercepted Cupido outside a shop in Lower Caversham Best One.

"Outside that shop there was a confrontation, stand off and scuffle.

"Within a short period of time Mr Joseph had used that knife to stab Cupido once in the chest."

The jury was played CCTV of the scuffle and shown footage of Mr Cupido collapsing in Managua Close after running a short distance following being stabbed.

The trial continues.

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