'Why would Dale Francis park in front of a CCTV camera in a car registered to himself if he was planning to murder' defence tells Wolverhampton jury
A man accused of mudering a Wolverhampton victim and injuring his family in their home has declined to take the stand in his trial.
Dale Francis, who is charged with the murder of Akashdeep Singh, the attempted murder of his mother and brother and the arson of their Plascom Road home, declined to give evidence from the witness box.
Francis, 37, who is standing trial with Daniel Tatters, 26, at Wolverhampton Crown Court let his barrister Rebecca Wade do the talking as he strenuously denied knowing the conclusion of his ill-fated journey from Stoke on Trent to East Park on July 25 last year would be murder.
Rebecca Wade KC, defending, said: "The prosecution claim Mr Francis did a reccy to Willenhall in the weeks before the fire. However, his VW Golf never once went to Plascom Road. Just because a crime happens in an area the defendant is familiar with it does not mean in anyway they are guilty.
"Did he really fail to notice the industrial unit he parked by had a CCTV camera which fully showed his registration plate, in a car which is registered to him. Why would he take his own phone, naivety?
