David Brickwood trial: Case put on pause on second day of hearing into unsolved Northampton murder

The trial of a man accused of murdering Northampton's David Brickwood has been put on hold until Thursday.

There will be no progress in the trial over the unsolved murder of Northampton's David Brickwood today.

On only the second day of the long-awaited court case, and still midway through the prosecution's opening speech, the jury have been told they will not hear any more evidence until Thursday (April 22).

The hearing is not being held in Northampton but instead at Birmingham Crown Court.

Today (April 21), His Honour Judge Edward Pepperall ruled there would be no progress until Thursday while the court dealt with the expected verdict of another trial.

It comes after prosecutor Mr Peter Grieves-Smith QC yesterday set out his case for how he says the 74-year-old grandfather was murdered in his Abington home in September 26, 2015.

Cameron St Rose, 26, from Forest Gate, London, is charged with allegedly breaking into the Lindsay Avenue house, forcing entry into Mr Brickwood's bedroom and murdering him in a botched search for cash.

It is alleged that St Rose left his DNA at the scene when he removed a window pane from its frame on the ground floor to gain entry.St Rose, who would have been 21 at the time of the alleged offences, has pleaded not guilty to all charges.

The jury has also been told that there were at least two intruders that night, but a second suspect has never been identified.

It is believed that Mr Brickwood was targeted because he was known to keep large amounts of cash in the house and "didn't trust banks".

In fact, when police searched the property after the murder, they found £60,000 stashed around the home. The grandfather's mattress had been flipped out of its frame by the intruders in an apparent search for money.

An inquest later heard the popular scrap metal dealer, who was described as a “pillar of the Abington community” by a neighbour, suffered 35 separate injuries, including multiple stab wounds.

David initially survived the attack and was able to call the police. Officers performed emergency first aid in an attempt to save the 74-year-old’s life, however, he died a short time later at Northampton General Hospital.

The trial continues.