Boston stabbing: Stephen Sleaford denies murder
- Published
Stephen Sleaford denies fatally stabbing Janusz Smoderek
A man stabbed a stranger in the heart after going to help a young woman who was receiving "unwanted attention", a court has heard.
Janusz Smoderek, 48, was found dead in a garden off Sleaford Road in Boston, Lincolnshire on 11 September 2012.
Stephen Anthony Sleaford, 38, of no fixed address, denies murdering Mr Smoderek, a married father-of-three who worked as a flower packer.
Lincoln Crown Court heard Mr Smoderek suffered six separate stab wounds.
Mr Sleaford stabbed Mr Smoderek, who lived in the Revesby Road area of Boston, after going to help a young woman who was walking home alone after a drunken night out, the court was told.
Tim Spencer QC, prosecuting, told the court Mr Sleaford first acted lawfully in helping the young woman who was receiving "unwanted attention" from Mr Smoderek but he then pulled out a knife and stabbed him when he was no longer a threat to anyone else.
The trial, which is expected to last four weeks, continues.