Brierley Hill murder victims were getting fed up over £200,000 owed to them, jury told
Two friends shot dead in a Range Rover in Dudley were growing increasingly angry with the man accused of killing them over money they were owed, a jury has heard.
Jonathan Houseman is accused of murdering Will Henry and Brian McIntosh over a £200,000 debt he owed them.
They were killed at the Albion Works industrial estate in Brierley Hill last September.
Jurors at Birmingham Crown Court heard phone messages that were exchanged between the three in the lead-up to the killings.
The jury previously heard the three men had worked together but that Houseman, of no fixed address but formerly of Quarry Park Road, Stourbridge, had never paid the victims after hiring them to clear "1,000 tons of waste" at a site in Halesowen.
The pair, both fathers, from Bartley Green, Birmingham, appeared to have no idea they were targets, exchanging WhatsApp messages about football and boxing the day before they were killed.
Friction
Both were also in contact with Houseman, who denies murder, right up until shortly before their deaths, phone records showed. Houseman signed off a message to Mr Henry the night before "see you tomoz", while all frequently referred to each other as "mate".
There had, however, been friction between the friends and the alleged shooter over the previous few days, the messages showed.
On September 25, five days before the killings, Mr Henry messaged Houseman saying: "Need to fix up Jon. Out of order what you're doing."
Mr Henry then messaged Mr McIntosh, saying he "told him to fix up" and that Houseman "needs to come up with money next week".
Mr Henry also appeared to have been irritated that Houseman had not moved a skip as promised.
Prosecutor Mr Michael Burrows QC said a message sent the day before the killings from alleged shooter Houseman to his co-accused Richard Avery saying he was "going to self-isolate" the next day was key, as he had previously arranged a meeting but had now changed his mind.
Avery, 33, of no fixed address, who the Crown have said was part of the “planning and preparation” for the killings, also denies murder and perverting the course of justice.
Avery’s partner, 33-year-old Francesca Scott, of Lower Valley Road, Brierley Hill, is also on trial, accused of perverting the course of justice after allegedly disposing of clothing or other items.
The trial continues.
