Joel Adesina trial: Fatal stabbing of Dagenham teenager was ‘self-defence’

A passenger travelling in the car of a man accused of murdering 15-year-old Joel Adesina carried out the fatal stabbing in self-defence, the Old Bailey heard yesterday.

Georgie Phillips, 20, of Hood Walk, Romford is accused of murdering Joel Adesina of Wood Lane, Dagenham who died in the early hours of December 6 last year after being stabbed the previous evening.

But as Stephen Kramer QC began his summing up for the jury yesterday, he cited evidence Phillips gave on Monday, in which he stated it was a passenger in his car who stabbed the teenager.

Phillips claimed that after an object was thrown at his blue Mercedes by a member of Joel’s group, a passenger known as “Kells” got out of the car and chased after the group.

He said after confronting Joel and friend Adam Meragan, 19, in Bethnal Green’s Padbury Court, Kells drew a knife to defend himself from a sword Joel was threatening him with.

He is alleged to have then returned to the car and faced questioned from another passenger called Owen, who Phillips said saw the stabbing.

“He [Owen] asked: ‘What did you do that for?’” he said. “[Kells replied] I had to.

“There were two of them and one of them was running at me with a Rambo [large knife].

“It was lucky I had a knife.”

Phillips pleads not guilty to murder and says he was unaware of any of his four passengers carrying knives until after the attack.

The trial continues.