'Gang plotted to kill'

7:18am Friday 28th March 2008

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A CHESHAM man conspired to murder a 60-year-old who was beaten with a crowbar, a court heard.

Douglas Belcher was left in the middle of a road after the savage attack, a jury was told.

Four men including Stephen Lloyd, 34 of Hospital Hill, Chesham, deny conspiracy to murder.

Lloyd waited outside Mr Belcher's Milton Keynes home while accomplices Mahad Ali and Yussuf Mire went inside, it is alleged.

They were looking for cannabis plants and cash, the court heard.

The jury was out at the time of going to press.

The brother of the Chesham man instigated the robbery plot after smelling cannabis plants at the home of a former hippy', a court was told.

Benjamin Lloyd conspired to rob the home of Douglas Belcher after the discovery while cleaning Mr Belcher's windows.

He hatched the plot with half-brother Stephen from Chesham and two Somalians, it is alleged.

They believed Mr Belcher had cash and a valuable stash worth £200,000 - but Reading Crown Court was told there were only 66 plants for his personal use.

Jurors were shown CCTV footage of Stephen Lloyd and co-defendant Mahad Ali buying a crowbar from a B&Q store in Bletchley.

Later that day, April 2 last year, the four men visited Mr Belcher's home in Tweed Drive, Milton Keynes, the court was told.

The Lloyd brothers waited in a nearby street as they said they were known in the area, 19-year-old defendant Yussuf Mire said.

He said they believed Belcher was not in the house - but he returned and found him and co-defendant Mahad Ali in his garage.

They then both attacked him, Ali with a crowbar and Mire with his fists, the prosecution alleged.

The two deny the attack and said Mr Belcher agreed to take them to another cannabis farm in his van to buy them off with the drug.

Mire said he got an angry phone call from Stephen Lloyd who told him to turn back. Both say Mr Belcher fell from the van into Tweed Drive.

Ali, 20. said: "He might have stumbled and fallen against the door. I can't speculate because I didn't see what happened."

The four then fled to London, the court was told.

Neil Moore, prosecuting, said: "This is just a desperate attempt by you to try and get off this vicious, nasty attack."

Mr Belcher suffered skull fractures in three places and brain damage which later killed him.

Ripped up notes confessing the burglary were found at Stephen Lloyd's Chesham home, the court was told.

All admit conspiracy to burgle.

High Court Judge Mr Justice Cooke said: "The prosecution's case is that all four defendants not only conspired to burgle the premises but all anticipated that serious violence might be required to achieve the objective of obtaining money and cannabis."

Benjamin Lloyd, 30, of Trafalgar Avenue, Milton Keynes, Stephen Lloyd, 34 , of Hospital Hill, Chesham, Mire, 19, of Meryat Avenue, Harrow, and Ali, of Cecil Road, Harrow, deny conspiracy to murder.