Gang of robbers 'battered shopkeeper to death'

Gurmail Singh, 63, was beaten over the head with bottles of wine taken from his own shelves as he tried in vain to stop four young men taking cash, cigarettes, alcohol and sweets from his shop in Fixby, Huddersfield.

Prosecutor Adrian Waterman QC told Bradford Crown Court: "Gurmail Singh did not meekly hand over his property, his hard- earned money.

"When he resisted the robbers they used serious violence on him, grabbing the nearest weapon to hand, which happened to be bottles of wine he sold in the shop. He was hit on the head. It was that which caused his death."

Mr Waterman told the jury: "This was a robbery gone wrong."

The prosecutor was opening the case on the first day of the trial of Umare Aslam, 20; Muawaz Khalid, 20; Shoaib Khan, 18; Nabeel Shafi, 18; and Rehman Afzal, 18.

He said it was the prosecution case that four of the defendants – Aslam, Khalid, Shafi and Afzal – went into the store to rob Mr Singh.

Khan was not in the shop because he could not fit in the taxi which took the others.

But Mr Waterman told the jury: "It is the Crown's case that each of these defendants was at the very least involved in a joint enterprise.

"To put it in more colloquial terms, they were in it together and each was responsible, criminally, for his death."

All five defendants deny murder. Khalid, Khan and Aslam also deny robbery.

Aslam, of Coniston Avenue, Dalton, Huddersfield; Khalid, of Blackmoorfoot Road, Huddersfield; Khan, of Calton Street, Hillhouse, Huddersfield; Shafi, of Park Hill, Bradley, Huddersfield; and Afzal, of Jacinth Court, Fartown, Huddersfield, sat in the dock listening intently as Mr Waterman outlined the case against them.

He told the jury how smokers outside a pub, opposite the Cowcliffe Convenience Store, realised something was wrong when they saw two of the robbers – Afzal and Aslam – walk and then run from the scene.

One man went over to the store, saw the two remaining robbers rifling through cigarettes and spirits bottles and trapped them inside by holding the door as the two defendants – Khalid and Shafi – made a desperate attempt to smash their way out.

They eventually found their way out of a back door and ran. They were tackled by members of the public but escaped.

Mr Singh was lying on the floor. His turban was off and his head was bleeding. He died the following day – February 21.

Later, the jury was told how the defendants Afzal and Shafi have pleaded guilty to the charge of robbing Mr Singh.

Jurors were also told Khan has admitted a charge of assisting an offender.

The case continues today and is expected to last several weeks.