A MAN on trial for murder told jurors he didn’t stab his alleged victim, and that it was his school friend who ‘must have’ delivered the fatal blow.

Giving evidence for the first time, Brookton Lagan pointed the finger at one of his co-accused - Taison Cyrille - who he said had ‘never denied’ the stabbing that night.

He went on to admit that he did stab one man during the night of violence, but it was only because that man was wielding a golf club.

Read again: The opening of the case last month

Three men - Lagan, 19, of Robin Way, Didcot, Isaac Boyland, 20, of Marlborough Road, Oxford, and Taison Cyrille, 19, of Market End Way, Bicester, all deny murdering Darren 'Dizzy' MacCormick in Didcot in January.

They further deny two counts of wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm upon two men - Matthew Ryman and Floyd Kennedy.

Boyland and Cyrille also deny conspiracy to supply Class A cocaine between January 1 and 10 this year, which Lagan has admitted.

As their trial at Oxford Crown Court continued today, the case for the defence got under way, with Lagan going to the witness box to give his version of events.

He told jurors that he was at the scene of the alleged killing in the early hours of January 9 this year in Mendip Heights, Didcot.

Lagan said that he visited the area twice that night and both times he had a knife with him.

Asked if he stabbed Mr MacCormick, he said that he did not and neither did he kick nor punch him.

He went on to say that he did not ‘encourage anyone else’ to stab or assault him.

Lagan told jurors he didn’t see anyone stab or assault Mr MacCormick but that he later found out who had.

Read again: Expert witnesses given evidence as trial continued

He said: “It must have been Taison Cyrille who had hit Mr MacCormick and stabbed him.”

Asked what made this clear to him, he said: “The amount of blood I saw on his clothes when I got back in the car.

“And he never denied that he had done it.”

Lagan went on to tell jurors that during the incident he did stab another man who was present - Matthew Ryman - once in the leg.

Asked why he stabbed him he said: “I just wanted him to back off because he was trying to hit me with a golf club.”

He denied assaulting or stabbing a third man - Floyd Kennedy - who was also present that night.

Asked about dealing heroin and crack cocaine in the run-up to the violence, Lagan admitted drug dealing.

He told jurors that Cyrille - who he referred to as a ‘friend’ he had first met in school - had helped him in the Class A drugs operation.

Asked about the carrying of weapons, he said that he took to carrying a knife with him after receiving information from police that somebody had made threats to stab him.

The three men deny the charges. The trial continues.