Razvan Sirbu: Homeless man murdered 'because it was funny'

Razvan Sirbu's body was found in an area of woodland

A teenager accused of beating a homeless man to death confessed to the crime, saying he did it "cos he thought it was funny", a jury has been told.

Alex McDonald, 19, made the confession to fellow accused Charlie White following the killing of Razvan Sirbu in May, Maidstone Crown Court heard.

Both men deny murdering the 21-year-old Romanian at the Loose Valley Conservation Area in Tovil, Maidstone.

Jimmy Buckley has been found medically unfit to plead to the same charge.

The jury will not have to decide on the guilt of 20-year-old Mr Buckley, of Capell Close, Coxheath, only whether he "did the act".

'Meat cleaver'

Philip Bennetts for the prosecution read out a conversation between 19-year-old Mr White and Mr McDonald, of Regency Place, Maidstone, which the jury was told had been heard by a person who cannot be named for legal reasons.

Mr White said: "Did you kill him, or did I?"

Mr McDonald replied: "Well, I killed him, didn't I?"

The court was told that Mr White then asked him: "Why did you keep beating him in the face?", to which Mr McDonald said: "Cos I thought it was funny."

The witness said the morning after the murder Mr White had broken down in tears as he described what had happened the night before.

Mr White told the witness he had gone to meet a man about a lawnmower and had taken a meat cleaver with him "in case there was trouble", the court heard.

He told the witness he saw his friends fighting with Mr Sirbu and that he hit him in the shoulder six or seven times with the meat cleaver.

Mr White, of no fixed address, had insisted he had not killed Mr Sirbu, the court was told.