A murder accused from Nottingham sent messages telling friends he had “smoked” a man, moments after either he and his teenage cousin stabbed him to death, a trial has heard. In a series of voice notes sent on Snapchat, Keaton Adlam told how victim Reece Connor had attacked Kersharn Dockeray-Barnett, so they killed him, the prosecution claim.

A jury was told how Mr Connor, a 29-year-old father-of-two suffered a single and fatal stab wound to the chest after being assaulted by the pair on the pavement next to the city’s Crown Island on Christmas Day, last year.

Adlam, 24, of Southwold Drive, and 18-year-old Dockeray-Barnett, of Marchwood Close, both deny murder.

John Lloyd-Jones KC, opening the trial at Nottingham Crown Court said: “At around 7.45pm on Christmas Day last year, Reece Connor was walking in the Crown Island underpass and encountered Kersharn Dockeray-Barnett. The two of them did not know each other but there was some sort of dispute and they then both left the underpass.

“A short time later, Kersharn Dockeray-Barnett returned to the Crown Island area accompanied by his co-defendant. There, they confronted Reece Connor, there was a fight and Reece Connor was fatally stabbed with a knife to the chest."

The prosecutor told the jury how, at 7.40pm on the night of the stabbing, Dockeray-Barnett and Mr Connor left their initial encounter in the underpass and set off in separate directions with the accused getting back on his electric scooter and riding in the direction of Middleton Boulevard while Mr Connor left and walked past the front of the Crown pub. Mr Lloyd-Jones said moments later, Dockeray-Barnett called Adlam.

He said: "At the time that call was still going on Keaton Adlam left the Marchwood Close address of Kersharn Dockeray-Barnett. The prosecution says nothing more than a common sense conclusion is that something had happened in that underpass. Kersharn Dockeray-Barnett was very keen to speak to his cousin and Adlam was keen to meet him."

The prosecutor said as Adlam jogged to meet his co-defendant he sent a number of Snapchat voice messages. He said: "One said 'our man just rushed Kish'. Kish being a nickname for Kersharn Dockeray-Barnett and we say that means someone has just attacked Kish. He sent another one that said 'am about to kill everyone' which we say is extremely important in the context of the tragic future events that are about to occur."

Mr Lloyd-Jones said: "Reece Connor crossed the carriageways of the roundabout and approached the bottom of Wollaton Road. The (two) defendants were (now) coming in the opposite direction, they saw him, ran towards him, there was a confrontation and during the course of it Reece Connor was fatally stabbed in the chest.

“The incident was over in about a minute. There is no dispute that during this Reece Connor was stabbed in the chest and a short while later died from that stab wound. “They (the defendants) left in different directions. Kersharn Dockeray-Barnett, on his e-scooter, headed up Radford Bridge Road and Adlam went up Western Boulevard."

The prosecutor said moments after the stabbing, Adlam sent further voice messages on Snapchat. He said: "One said 'some yute just tried to smoke Kish, bro' which we say means another man had tried to kill Kish (Kersharn Dockeray-Barnett). Another said 'some random guy just ran up to Kish and just started banging Kish, bro' which we say is Reece Connor attacking Kersharn Dockeray-Barnett. He then sent a message saying 'Fam, some random guy just started on my cousin so I had to smoke him'. We say the street interpretation is that Adlam had 'smoked' him meaning he had killed the random guy and that's exactly what happened to Reece Connor."

Mr Lloyd-Jones said an ambulance crew arrived within eight minutes of a 999 call being made but he was sadly pronounced dead at 8.49pm the same evening. Mr Lloyd-Jones said Adlam handed himself into the police on Boxing Day and was arrested. He said in his police interview he said his cousin called him (after the initial encounter with the deceased) to say he had been "rushed" and had suffered a black eye.

The prosecutor said: "He said he came round the corner, saw the deceased and his cousin said 'that's him' so he remonstrated with him about 'hitting a kid' and the deceased said 'I am going to kill you' and they started to fight. He said all he was doing was protecting his cousin and that he threw the first punch. He said they exchanged punches and he then saw the man 'go limp' and drop to the floor. He said he saw no weapons and he did not know how the deceased was stabbed to the chest."

Mr Lloyd-Jones said Dockeray-Barnett was taken to Radford Road police station, also on Boxing Day, by a family member and answered "no comment" to the questions he was asked. He said Mr Connor's blood was found in three separate areas on the front of a jacket the police seized from him.

Concluding the prosecution’s opening, Mr Lloyd-Jones said: “We say whatever the dispute was that provoked this incident, whatever happened in that underpass, there was never any need to stab Reece Connor. We say his death was entirely unnecessary.

“We say after the encounter in the underpass, Kersharn Dockeray-Barnett recruited his cousin, Keaton Adlam, they were seeking revenge and that’s exactly what happened. These defendant’s found him, attacked him, stabbed him and killed him.”

The trial continues.