Sheffield Crown Court: Two delivery men allegedly abandoned a job for a customer later accused of killing a delivery man

An ongoing Sheffield Crown Court trial has heard how Callum Rutherford, Jake Lakin and Arron Hartigan have all pleaded not guilty to the manslaughter of 40-year-old delivery man Nadeem Qureshi who was found seriously injured on wasteland off Station Road, at Deepcar, near Stocksbridge, in Sheffield, on July 24, 2019, before he died on the same day.

Nicholas Campbell KC, prosecuting, said a delivery van with a driver and two passengers including Mr Qureshi had allegedly been called out and targeted by the three accused during an alleged planned robbery which went wrong and Mr Qureshi was unlawfully killed after he was run over by the reversing delivery van as he tried to get out of the vehicle.

Mr Campbell also claimed that earlier in the same month Mr Rutherford had used a false name when he initially contacted Unicorn Foods, in Bolton, and tried to arrange an order of cream charger gas canisters and a night meeting was originally arranged for two delivery men to drop off the goods on July 19, 2019, in Deepcar, Sheffield, in exchange for £3,400.

These two delivery men arrived at Station Road and stopped outside Lowood Club near an isolated area which worried them, according to Mr Campbell, and they were given directions by phone to go down an alleyway before they felt ‘spooked’ and decided to go to a McDonald’s for food.

Mr Campbell – regarding one of the concerned delivery men - said: “The house was isolated and that worried him and he became worried when children playing outside told him they weren’t expecting a delivery.”

These two delivery men phoned Unicorn Foods and said they thought the arrangement was ‘dodgy’ and they wanted to do the delivery at a bright petrol station and arranged to meet the buyers at Wheatacre Road, Stocksbridge, before they decided to return to Leeds with the transaction incomplete.

Mr Campbell added: “The prosecution case was that something sinister was planned by those wanting to get their hands on nitrous gas.”

However, Mr Campbell said a further delivery was allegedly arranged by Mr Rutherford and this was the meeting that involved Mr Qureshi and his fellow passenger and driver in the Transit van that was allegedly targeted by the three accused in the suspected robbery and that was allegedly linked to the death of Mr Qureshi on July 24, 2019.

Mr Campbell claimed the van driver, Mr Qureshi and another passenger had been making the second, rearranged delivery of nitrous oxide canisters – which had allegedly been arranged by Mr Rutherford again using the false name of ‘Stephen Hardy’ – when they were targeted by the accused.

The van was directed down a track at Deepcar and blocked by a 4x4 vehicle allegedly driven by Mr Hartigan with passenger Mr Lakin allegedly holding a ‘gun’, according to Mr Campbell, and as Mr Qureshi tried to get out his van driver reversed and accidentally ran him over.

The delivery van was pursued by the 4x4 and a VW vehicle driven by Mr Rutherford towards Sheffield before the defendants gave up the chase, according to Mr Campbell.

Mr Rutherford, aged 26, of Lee Avenue, at Deepcar, Sheffield, Mr Lakin, aged 22, of Smithy Moor Avenue, at Stocksbridge, Sheffield, and Mr Hartigan, aged 25, of Stocksbridge, Sheffield, have all denied manslaughter and have also all pleaded not guilty to conspiring to commit a robbery and to having an imitation firearm with intent to commit a robbery.

Mr Rutherford claimed he had been at the location to receive a delivery, and Mr Lakin and Mr Hartigan claimed they had been ‘off-roading’, according to Mr Campbell who also said the defence’s case would be that both their vehicles had been at the location by coincidence.

Mr Campbell explained nitrous oxide is used to carbonate drinks or to whip cream and it is also known as ‘laughing gas’ and it can be used as a drug.

The trial continues.