A plumber was tried in court after he brutally stabbed an irate delivery man to death in the street before fleeing to Europe for 17 months.
Nathan Smith, 28, was involved in the January 2020 murder of Algerian Deliveroo and Uber Eats employee Takieddine 'Taki' Boudhane in Finsbury Park, north London. Wanted in connection.
After fleeing trial and spending time in Austria, Switzerland and Portugal, Smith was arrested in Lisbon in June 2021 and brought back to the UK.
Old Bailey heard that a 30-year-old Algerian citizen and the driver of a white van, who did not know each other, collided on the road.
His prosecutor, Julian Evans, said: “From CCTV footage, it appears Takieddin and Smith exchanged words [and] from what happened afterward, the meeting was not a friendly one.”
Stopped in traffic, Smith "aggressively" climbed out of the van armed with a knife and approached Takieddin "at breakneck speed."
At this point, another delivery driver, Abdallah Cherfi, recognized the moped rider and stopped beside him.
Mr. Evans describes the horrifying picture of what happened next.
"According to Sherfi, Takieddin had a driver.
After a street brawl in which Takieddin was seen brandishing a crash helmet in defense, Smith stabbed him twice in the upper body.
"It is the prosecution's case that one of the two quick knife blows each entered Takieddin's chest with great force." Evans added.
The victim fell to the ground from mortal wounds as Smith's van drove away.
Despite the best efforts of paramedics, he was pronounced dead at the scene at 7:42 pm.
An autopsy determined the cause of death to be his 75mm deep stab wound to the chest. It became clear and pierced his heart.
Smith is accused of heading to his parents' home on his road to Marlborough, Archway, without telling his parents immediately after the attack.
The next day, after paying for the ticket with his brother's bank card and using his brother's passport, he traveled from Luton Airport to Austria.
Two days after his attack, police arrived at his home following a CCTV investigation, and Smith's father said he received a lake and mountain view from his son. showed the video to the police.
In February 2020, the Westminster Magistrate's Court issued an arrest warrant on suspicion of murder, but he was not returned to the UK until his June 2021.
Smith is a former plumber who runs his own business and has denied his one count of murder and is currently on trial.
The case continues.
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