Man who denies murder said he felt unwell when he knifed pensioner in the street

An asylum seeker who fatally stabbed a pensioner in the street has told jurors he felt unwell and that he might faint when he did it.

Ahmed Alid, 45, is charged with murdering Terence Carney, 70, in Hartlepool town centre, minutes after repeatedly knifing his sleeping housemate Javed Nouri, 31, in his bed.

The prosecution at Teesside Crown Court has said Alid, from Morocco and who moved with family to Algeria, was motivated out of “revenge” for the Israel-Palestine conflict.

Both men were stabbed six times in the early hours of October 15, eight days after the Hamas attacks on Israel, and Mr Nouri survived after fighting off his attacker.

Alid admits he stabbed them both and agrees it was wrong, but denies he intended to cause either serious harm or that he was “responsible” for their injuries.

Giving evidence from the witness box, Alid, said he felt as if someone else was pushing him when he forced his way into Mr Nouri’s room.

After describing the struggle he had with the former body builder who had converted to Christianity, he explained how a number of problems, including an issue with his father dating back to 2003, were on his mind.

He also said he felt homesick, that he could not work in the UK and that he had argued with Mr Nouri previously.

The jury has heard how Mr Nouri clashed with Alid about the shared property being dirty when he moved in.

After stabbing Mr Nouri, Alid claimed he left the asylum seekers’ accommodation in Wharton Terrace, Hartlepool, in the early hours of October 15, looking for a clinic as he had suffered a cut hand during the fight.

He recalled seeing Mr Carney coming towards him and the defendant remembered shouting “Free Palestine” in a loud voice.

He claimed Mr Carney, whom he said he had seen out and about previously, said something like “Go back to your country”.

Via an Arabic interpreter, Alid told jurors: “My hand was bleeding, I had lost a lot of blood and he came towards me.

“I felt like dizziness.”

John Elvidge KC, defending, asked: “Why did you stab him?”

Alid replied: “I was not feeling well.

“I thought I am going to faint and he will take the knife from me and he will stab me.”

After he knifed the pensioner, Mr Carney fell and began to crawl on the ground, Alid said.

The defendant told the jury he believed Mr Carney was looking for a stone with which to hit him.

Mr Elvidge asked: “Did you intend to cause him really serious harm?”

Alid replied: “No, he was an old man.

“Any normal person at that age would never talk to anyone at this time.”

Earlier, Alid said he came to Europe in 2007 as there was a problem with the intelligence services monitoring his shop and they were “harassing” him.

He moved around the continent for years, spending time in Spain, France, Italy, Germany, Scandinavia, the Netherlands and Austria, before he came to the UK in 2020 via a ferry, arriving in Middlesbrough.

The court heard he was arrested by police as he did not have the correct papers and he applied for asylum.

Asked by Mr Elvidge if that was successful, Alid said: “I didn’t have any answer.”

He was allowed to work four hours a week, but that did not lead to him getting a job, the court heard.

Alid, who had no previous convictions, was into fitness and was frequently seen running in Hartlepool, jurors were told.

He denies murder, attempted murder and assaulting two female detectives after they interviewed him.

The trial was adjourned until Tuesday.