The jury has departed for a mid-morning break and Sarah Forshaw QC will continue her questioning at midday.

On the morning of Jodie Chesney's death, Manuel Petrovic said he met Svenson Ong-a-Kwie and another of the teenage defendants at a cafe in east London.

Before that, Mr Petrovic said he owed the 16-year-old boy's father some drugs "due to a shortfall the night before".

The defendants then meet at Cafe 23 in Romford - somewhere they would regularly go.

"I collected the teenager and Svenson at his address in Hillfoot," Mr Petrovic said.

Sarah Forshaw QC asks: "Was there anything unusual about 1 March so far?"

"No," he replies. "There was nothing weird about the morning."

Before joining the two in the cafe. Mr Petrovic said he went to a nearby pub to go and pick up some drugs.

"I had maybe £2,000 worth of cocaine in my man bag," he tells the jury.

Ms Forshaw has started to ask Manuel Petrovic about the black Vauxhall Corsa - which was driven to and from the scene where Jodie Chesney was stabbed in the back.

"I purchased the Vauxhall Corsa on 28 February," he said. "I don't have a licence and I have never sat a test.

"I had just come off a ban for the aggravated vehicle taking."

The 20-year-old said he registered the car in his name and used his mum's address.

He also told jurors he previously drove a BMW and "used to get hold of a lot of rental cars or stolen cars so they could not be traced to him."

Before Jodie Chesney was stabbed on 1 March, Manuel Petrovic said he had crashed a car and became "in debt" to a man called "Boris".

"I was renting a car and I had crashed the car," he said. "I owed him £6,000 to £7,000.

"I worked the Class A drugs phone to pay him back quicker."

Ms Forshaw asks: "The Class A line you were covering for Boris, how would it work out?"

Mr Petrovic replies he would keep wraps of cocaine at his mum's address in Highfield Road, Romford, and at the address of another friend.

Image source, Julia Quenzler

Describing his links to Svenson Ong-a-Kwie, Manuel Petrovic says he knew the 19-year-old for "about four years".

"He used to buy cannabis off me," he told jurors. "I only knew he dealt his own recently."

Ms Forshaw asks Mr Petrovic what he would call Svenson.

"S," Mr Petrovic replies.

"I'd see him quite a lot towards the end of the year. He was working in the Harold Hill area around October 2018 selling cannabis and cocaine.

"We would meet sometimes due to business, then one of my friends started working for Svenson.

"We weren't really friends we were more a business association. He asked me for a lift."

Mr Petrovic told jurors he was Mr Ong-a-Kwie's "wheels" when another associate was injured in a car crash.

The 20-year-old added to his knowledge, Mr Ong-a-Kwie did not drive.

Manuel Petrovic said he would sell his drugs in the Collier Row and Romford areas of east London.

He adds: I'd supply my drugs around Collier Row first of all, I lived with a friend in Romford for two years.

"So I stopped the Collier Row area and started the Romford area near the Queen's Hospital.

"Then when I moved back to Collier Row, I had customers in both areas."

Sarah Forshaw QC then asks him about his links to the other defendants - first of all referring to the 16-year-old boy.

"I looked at him like my little brother," he said. "I felt he was getting in with the wrong crowd.

"Sometimes he could spend the morning to the night with me."

"I sell a bit of weed to people but I do not do robberies."

Mr Petrovic told the jury he felt the teenager was "hanging around" people who would commit robberies and added he did not know about the teenager's life at home.

Manuel Petrovic has told jurors he left school with no qualifications and did not sit any GCSEs.

He adds he attended two pupil referral units in Hornchurch and then in Romford.

"I did look for jobs," Mr Petrovic says. "I had one as a landscape gardener.

"It wasn't full time but no one wanted to give me a job at the time."

Miss Forshaw then reads out a couple of previous convictions Mr Petrovic has had since he was 14 - these include handling stolen goods, aggravated vehicle taking and cannabis offences.

"This is the first time I have been in prison, while on remand for this," he tells the jury.

Manuel Petrovic's parents separated when he was 13 years old, the jury has been told.

The 20-year-old said his father moved to Leicester with his older brother Christian - who Mr Petrovic said he was closest with.

"I was playing football," he said. "I was meant to be scouted by West Ham but at that time I was getting into trouble, I was bunking and wasn't attending school as much.

"My dad wasn't there to take me anymore.

"It was normally three times a week, then once a week and then I was just lazy to go and wouldn't.

"I started hanging around with a couple of boys who I thought were friends. I was smoking, first cigarettes at the age of around 13 or 14 and then onto cannabis.

"I got into debt with one of my dealers. I had to do a couple of things to pay him off. A couple of drug deals. I was his runner until I was out of debt.

"Then I started selling cannabis for myself."

Image source, Julia Quenzler

Defence barrister Sarah Forshaw QC has called her client Manuel Petrovic to give evidence.

Mr Petrovic, 20, of Highfield Road, Romford in east London, walks across from the dock to the witness box.

Wearing a dark blue suit Mr Petrovic tells Judge Joseph he will stand while he faces questions.

Miss Forshaw says she will "start with the good bits".

Mr Petrovic says his parents are both Croation and his mum came to the UK when she was pregnant with him.

His mum gave birth in Germany and Mr Petrovic says he has spent most of his life in the UK and has two brothers and two sisters.

"I did well at school," Mr Petrovic says. "Until I got in with the wrong crowd."

Image source, Getty Images

The 12 jurors are in court, the four defendants are in the dock and Judge Wendy Joseph has taken her seat.

Jodie Chesney's uncle, Terry Chesney, is at the back of the court on behalf of the family and there are several members of the media on the press bench.

Up in the public gallery there are six people watching today's proceedings.

Danny Shaw
BBC Home Affairs Correspondent

After all the prosecution evidence has been heard, the defence is allowed to call its own witnesses, including the defendant.

The exercise takes place in reverse, with the defence barrister asking questions first.

When all the evidence has been completed, the jury hears closing speeches from prosecution and defence barristers where they put forward their final arguments.

Then the judge summarises the evidence during the trial and issues instructions to the jury about the law.

After that, the jury retires to consider its verdict, which, at least initially, must be unanimous - all 12 jurors agreed.

If there is a guilty verdict, sentencing may take place straight away, or it may be postponed to allow the judge to consider reports from the probation service and other experts.

Image source, Met Police

The prosecution concluded its case against Manuel Petrovic, Svenson Ong-a-Kwie and two teenage boys who cannot be named for legal reasons.

On Wednesday, prosecutor Crispin Aylett QC read out agreed facts in the case. These included:

• The clothing of Mr Petrovic and the clothing of the 17-year-old defendant were forensically examined. No traces of Jodie's blood was found.
• The knife recovered in Svenson Ong-a-Kwie's hostel bedroom was examined. No traces of blood was found and nothing suggests this is the knife that was used to stab Jodie.

The Jodie Chesney murder trial has resumed for the 14th day here at the Central Criminal Court.

We will be bringing you live updates as the defence cases get underway in court 8.

Image source, PA Media