An alleged killer showed a jury how he stabbed a dad-of-two to death and said he only did it because he thought he was about to be seriously injured.
Members of Paul Stenson’s family watched from the public gallery this morning as Adam Fletcher demonstrated how he "swung" a knife into Mr Stenson’s chest and listened as he said he did so after being threatened and assaulted himself.
Fletcher allegedly murdered Mr Stenson on Princess Drive in December - only hours after the two met at a party there. After an argument between the two turned into a scuffle and they were asked to go outside, Fletcher is said to have grabbed a kitchen knife from inside the home before hiding it behind his back, pulling Mr Stenson towards him and plunging it into his side.
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Prosecutors say that knife wound inflicted “catastrophic” damage, going straight through Mr Stenson’s heart and causing him to bleed to death quickly. They also say Fletcher, 28, tried to dodge justice for days after the killing with the help of his then girlfriend, Susie Lee, ex Demi Walsh and best friend Nathan Finnegan.
Fletcher stands accused of murder and of possessing a bladed article. Lee, Walsh and Finnegan are all accused of assisting an offender, while Lee also faces an additional charge of witness intimidation. The four deny all the charges and are currently on trial at Liverpool Crown Court.
Fletcher’s evidence to the court began yesterday and this morning he was cross examined by Richard Pratt QC, prosecuting. He accepts stabbing Mr Stenson but said he did so in self defence after he was punched by Mr Stenson inside the house before he was told to go outside to continue a fight with Mr Stenson.
Fletcher said he then heard someone say he would get "poked up" and grabbed the knife and went outside, where he said there were “five or six males” with Stenson. Other witnesses have previously said Fletcher was holding his knife behind his back in the moments before stabbing Mr Stenson but he claimed he was holding the knife where it could be seen.
He said that, rather than targeting Mr Stenson, he “swung out” in self defence when Mr Stenson lunged towards him and then ran off after he stabbed him because he thought he was going to be attacked. Fletcher said: “I did not know I had killed someone and I did not know where I had stabbed him. I just knew [the knife] had made contact.”
Mr Pratt said: “So you contacted probably the most dangerous part of the body, that was an unhappy chance?” Fletcher said: “That would never have happened if he had not come towards me. I thought he was going to stab me. Someone comes at you with a lunging arm, my reaction was ‘I’m going to get stabbed’.”
There has been no suggestion during the trial that Mr Stenson was carrying a knife. Prosecutors allege that, rather than lunging in a defensive way, Fletcher plunged the knife directly into Mr Stenson’s heart - and Mr Pratt asked Fletcher to demonstrate to the jury the motion that he believed he used. Fletcher then made a swinging motion with his right arm parallel to the floor.
The 28 year old accepts he then ran off and hid for days, saying he was scared of retribution after threats were made against him online. He rejected the idea he was trying to avoid justice. Fletcher said: “Of course I would have at some point spoken to the police about what happened but at that time I was very confused and scared so I wanted to get my head clear.”
Mr Pratt asked: “Get your head clear by coming up with a story?” Fletcher replied: “No get my head clear about getting attacked twice at a party for no reason.”
Proceeding
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