Son denies pointing out victim to killer driver

Brian Darby was killed in a hit and run in February

A van passenger accused of murdering a pedestrian in a revenge hit and run attack has denied pointing out the victim to his father who was driving.

Prosecutors allege Martin Breeze and his son Shaun ploughed into a group of people in Ingleby Barwick.

Brian Darby, 60, was killed instantly and three other people, including a boy aged 16, were seriously injured.

Both defendants deny 11 offences including murder, manslaughter and attempted murder, although Martin Breeze told Teesside Crown Court he accidentally killed Mr Darby.

Shaun Breeze, 29, said he spent 9 February taking cocaine and drinking with his 57-year-old father at their home on Owls Grove in Ingleby Barwick.

At about 23:00 he rode out on his bike to buy more drugs but the dealer did not show up, the court has heard.

As he cycled along a path behind the 3 Rivers Bar about half an hour later, he encountered Mr Darby and four of his friends who were walking home after a night in the pub.

The group said they shouted at Shaun and several people chased him after he barged into them, but the defendant told jurors he did not hit anyone.

He said he rode past the group and one of them kicked out at him.

The heavily damaged van was abandoned soon after the crash

Shaun Breeze said he stopped, held his arms up gesturing as if to say "what are you doing", then rode away.

He could see he was being chased and fled on foot after crashing into another pedestrian and falling from his bike, the court heard.

He said he was "panicking" and called his father to say he had had his bike stolen and needed a lift.

The court previously heard Martin Breeze got into his uninsured Citroen Berlingo van and raced to Myton Way to pick his son up.

Prosecutors have said the pair then deliberately drove into the group, but both men deny that.

Stolen van call

Shaun Breeze said he climbed into the van and was looking down to put his seat belt on when he suddenly felt the van "jolt" and the windscreen smashed.

His barrister John Elvidge KC asked if he pointed anyone out to his father or told him to "drive into anyone", to which he replied: "No."

Mr Elvidge asked Shaun if he had wanted his dad to drive into or hurt anyone, to which he again replied: "No."

He said they both panicked and drove away, abandoning the van before returning home and burying their "heads in the sand" by taking more drugs.

He said it was his father's idea to then call 999 and report the van stolen, with Shaun Breeze making the actual call.

When asked why he made the false report, he told the court: "I was panicking and my dad asked me to."

'Not true'

Under cross-examination by prosecutor Nick Dry, Shaun Breeze denied he had been angry when he was confronted by the group or that he was heavily under the influence of drugs.

He told jurors he did not know they had hit anyone and was panicking because the van was not insured and it would cost money to repair the vehicle.

Mr Dry told Shaun the prosecution case was that his father drove at the group after he identified them and that Martin Breeze did so with the "encouragement and assistance" of his son.

The younger defendant said that was "not true".

He earlier told the court he had suffered from migraines, anxiety and depression for most of his life and had dropped out of a degree at Teesside University after he started taking "more drugs" to help him manage his pain.

The jury also heard he has been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder and he was assisted in court by an intermediary.

The trial continues.