Telford murder accused 'would talk a load of rubbish' says neighbour
The neighbour of a Telford man accused of murder has told a court he would "talk a load of rubbish".
Worcester Crown Court heard evidence from Michael Collingbourne in the trial of Jason Trundle.
Trundle, 52, or no-fixed-abode, is accused of murdering Leon Pratt. He has denied murder but has pleaded guilty to charges of fraud and preventing a lawful burial.
The court heard that Mr Pratt, who was disabled and used a wheelchair, had taken in Trundle, who was homeless.
The defendant joined the 64-year-old at his Downemead, Hollinswood, Telford, and acted effectively as his carer.
The trial has heard how Mr Pratt was found dead at the home on October 26, 2024, when paramedics attended after concerns were raised by neighbours.
The 64-year-old was found dead in his room with 'maggots everywhere'. Trundle told paramedics he had been dead for 12 days, but denied killing him.
Earlier in the trial Richard Barraclough, prosecuting, said medical examinations of Mr Pratt's body had shown he suffered injuries to his ribs and neck.
The court heard that the neck fractures were "most likely caused by manual neck strangulation".
Mr Barraclough added: "This particular type of fracture is associated with strangulation.
"Whatever it is, considerable force is required to cause these injuries."
Giving evidence, Mr Collingbourne, a neighbour of Mr Pratt, told how neighbours decided to contact the emergency services on October 26, having not seen Mr Pratt for several weeks.
He said: "When it got into the third week we all spoke and asked where he was."
He added: "We all brought the subject up of 'where is Leon', and 'what's been happening' and we all decided to ring the police up.
"But Peter (Stanton - another neighbour) rang the police and they were not really interested so he rang the ambulance and they were there in ten minutes to be fair."
Mr Collingbourne said they were outside when the ambulance crew attended and heard them say that Mr Pratt was dead.
Asked what he knew about the relationship between Mr Pratt and Trundle he said: "Jason would help Leon with general chores. Helping him with his dog was the most important thing to Leon, but he did obviously generally help him going up to the shops, helping him in his bungalow and Jason obviously got to live there for nothing - that must have been what the agreement was."
Later Mr Collingbourne, who is a lorry driver, described Trundle as a man who would "talk a load of rubbish".
Asked about the defendant he said: "He was a nice enough bloke but he just talked a lot of rubbish most of the time."
He added: "He would come out with stupid stories that were not believable."
Mr Collingbourne recounted one story where he said Trundle told him he had been swimming in the Gulf with friends.
He said: "He said he was swimming with his mates and he turned round and he saw this great big eye and it was a Great White Shark - that sort of rubbish."
He added: "He just wanted to make himself look good to people, that's my opinion."
The trial continues.