The woman who helped harbour one of the men accused of Ben Gardner’s murder told police she was “gullible but not malicious” for helping him, a court heard.

Sarah Davey, 41, allowed Jordan Dixon, 18, to stay at her flat for two months while police hunted for him - just yards from where Mr Gardner died.

Miss Davey, of Throwley Way, Sutton, admitted she had seen coverage of the murder in the local and national press but failed to turn him in.

Under interview she told police she “could have gone to the police but didn’t want to get involved” and described herself as “naive and a soft-touch”.

Mr Dixon, Daniel Ransom, 21, and Ross Collender, 21, both from Carshalton, appeared at the Old Bailey accused of murdering Mr Gardner on Halloween last year. Miss Davey is charged with assisting an offender.

The court heard she looked after Mr Dixon, doing his washing and letting him use her phone. Mr Dixon even had Davey’s landline number in his mobile under the name “Sere”.

Mr Dixon, whose own father begged his son to hand himself in, told Davey that he only attacked Gardner because he was acting in self-defence.

Brian Altman QC, prosecuting, said: “This was a joint enterprise to give Ben Gardner, a defenceless man, a severe beating. There is only one conclusion you can reach, that each is guilty of murder and nothing else.”

However, the jury in the case were yesterday given another option for sentencing, namely manslaughter, if they do not feel they can convict for murder.

This means should they find the defendants not guilty of murder the jury can still convict for the lesser offence of manslaughter which still carries a heavy prison sentence.