Murder suspect threatened to kill DPD worker unless he supplied colleague's whereabouts

Aurman Singh was "brutally" killed in Berwick Avenue in the town on August 21. He had been attacked by a gang of men who had travelled from the Black Country in two cars, and who allegedly beat and hacked the 23-year-old DPD worker with an array of weapons including an axe, wooden stave and a golf club.

Stafford Crown Court heard on Wednesday that Sukhmandeep Singh, from Paynels in Orton Goldhay, Peterborough, who is one of the five men standing trial for murder, was working for a DPD franchisee in the 12 months leading up to to the death of Aurman Singh and was based out of the delivery firm's Stoke-on-Trent depot.

Taking the stand, the 24-year-old married man told the court that he knew Aurman Singh as he worked out of the same depot as he did, and he described him as a "work acquaintance".

He said he would stay at a friend's house in Smethwick when he was working at the depot, and it was there he first met two of the men accused of murdering Aurman Singh - Arshdeep Singh, who is standing trial for murder, and his "cousin" Mehakdeep Singh.

Mehakdeep Singh along with fellow Black Country men Harpreet Singh, Harwinder Singh Turna and Sehajpal Singh are still wanted by police in connection with the Shrewsbury attack and remain at large.

Sukhmandeep Singh told his defence barrister, Mr Philip Bradley KC, that on the night before the death of Aurman Singh he had received a call from Arshdeep Singh.

He said: "I had not spoken to him for three or four months. He called and asked me if I was going to work tomorrow or not. I said yes and he said could I find out if Aurman Singh was working tomorrow. I asked him why he wanted to know and he said it was none of my business."

He told the court that Arshdeep Singh then threatened him.