The man accused of murdering Nilanthan Murddi in a racist attack described how he hid the murder weapon in a rubbish bag on his way home.

Stephen Braithwaite, 31, is alleged to have had an argument with the 17-year-old tamil student after yelling ‘Pakis’ from the back of a cab.

Mr Murddi was drinking with his friends on the corner of London Road and Sumner Road.

The prosecution alleges Mr Braithwaite returned to confront the teenager armed with a knife after the cab dropped him off.

He denies being in the cab.

He told the jury after he was confronted by the group of asian boys he walked off down London Road towards his sister-in-law's flat in Longley Road.

He told the jury he kept looking back over his shoulder to see if anyone was following him and had put the knife he wrestled off Nilanthan Murddi into his right hand pocket.

He described the knife as a fixed blade with a wooden handle, he said it was like a dagger.

Christopher Kinch QC prosecuting said in the CCTV images of him walking down London Road, he did not look over his shoulder at all.

Mr Braithwaite insisted he was afraid of being followed and found by the group following their confrontation.

Earlier, witnesses told the court Mr Braithwaite attacked Nilanthan with a small folding knife he hid in his clothes, which he denied.

Mr Braithwaite said he disposed of the knife before he went home, burying it into a rubbish bag outside one of the houses on Addington road.

He said he pushed it into the middle so it was hidden from sight.

Mr Kinch asked him why he went into Addington Road to dispose of the knife, why he did not go home as soon as he could if he was afraid of being followed.

He said: "My kids were there, I did not want to take the knife in there.

"I have a one-year-old, a five-year-old boy, a nine-year-old daughter and a 13-year-old.

"I did not want to take the knife anywhere near my family, I wanted to get rid of it."

He described how he sat on the stairs leading to the flat after hiding the knife.

Mr Kinch asked Mr Braithwaite if he was so scared why did he not run home immediately rather than hiding the knife and sitting on the staircase leading to the flat.

He said: "I did not want to go into the flat and see Lisa and the kids in that state, I wanted to calm down first.

"Who can tell how anyone would react in this situation, I had all these emotions, it was crazy, there was so much going on it was madness."

Mr Braithwaite denies murder.

The trial continues.