'Threat to kill' made in seconds before Arsenal fan mowed down, murder trial told

Amanda Sophie Lee told a jury she heard the moment Benjamin Morse was struck by a Vauxhall Corsa in Beach Street, Halesowen, from the first floor of a nearby home.

She described hearing a car being driven "aggressively" and "erratically" and then an altercation which "quickly turned into an argument." She added the car drove away but returned.

"It came back revving its engine and I heard someone say 'I am going to f***ing kill you,'" she told the jury.

"Then the car shot off from the biting point, wheels spinning, it shot forward at speed."

Ms Lee, giving evidence at Wolverhampton Crown Court, said she could not say who made the threat to kill.

She added she then heard a "loud thud" before looking out of a window to see a man lying on the floor which she later learnt was Mr Morse.

"I heard people shouting 'Ben, Ben' in a distressed state, " she said.

"Neighbours came out and gathered around. I could hear Ben breathing very loud, very laboured.

"His friends were shouting 'stay with us. Don't leave me.'

"I heard him stop making the breathing noise, then the ambulance came."

Nidal Alboraiki, aged 21, is standing trial accused of murdering 36-year-old Mr Morse, of Yewtree Road, Halesowen, in the early hours of May 1.

The victim had just been dropped off by a taxi with a group of friends when it is alleged an exchange took place between Alboraiki and the group.

Alboraiki accepts having been the driver of the Corsa but denies murder.

It is alleged he first missed the group before turning the car around, accelerating toward them and hitting Mr Morse from behind at around 26mph.

On Wednesday, the jury also heard evidence from forensic pathologist, Dr Alexandar Kolar.

He outlined injuries which were sustained by Mr Morse including multiple rib fractures and brain damage which ultimately caused his death.

He said: "I found a wide array of significant brain and brain-covering injuries.

"The most significant damage was to the axons, the wires between nerve cells, which was only compatible with significant and ultimately fatal brain injury."

Mr Kolar said a toxicology report found alcohol and cocaine in Mr Morse's blood which had "no relevance" to the cause of death.

Alboraiki, of Foxhunt Road, Halesowen, is said to have fled the scene and abandoned the car later that morning. He is accused of seeking to dispose of the Corsa, for which he is charged with seeking to pervert the course of justice.

His younger brother, 19-year-old Ahmed Alboraiki, of the same address, is also on trial accused of seeking to pervert the course of justice by taking a mobile phone from his older brother during his arrest and disposing of it. The phone has not been recovered by the police. Ahmed Alboraiki denies the charge.

The trial continues.