A MAN accused of murder acted in self-defence, a court heard yesterday.

Joshua Harling, 19, from Headington, is alleged to have been stabbed on the night of July 22 last year.

He had got into his green VW Polo to drive away after a street fight – jurors at Oxford Crown Court previously heard – but crashed in Chinnor Road, Thame.

Prosecutors allege that Nathan Braim, 20, of Broadwaters Avenue, Thame, and Benjamin Eyles, 19, of Monks Hollow, Buckinghamshire, killed Mr Harling – which they both deny.

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Yesterday, police interviews with Braim and Eyles were read out in court.

On July 23, the day after Mr Harling died, both voluntarily attended a police station and the first interviews took place.

Braim was interviewed on three occasions – July 23, 25 and 26.

On July 23, he gave a prepared statement, which was read out in court yesterday.

It read: “I do not wish to say much at this stage due to the nature of the allegation.

“Mr Joshua Harling was the aggressor, he attacked me, every action taken was in self-defence – all the weapons in this incident belonged to him.”

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In resulting interviews, Braim made no comment.

Eyles meanwhile was interviewed seven times.

During the July 23 interview, Eyles told police: “A guy jumped out of a green Polo with an l-shaped metal bar and he ran towards me and Nathan.

“He was swinging the bar before he even got to me.

“I ran away from him because he was obviously running at me.

“I ran and Nathan didn’t run and that’s when he must’ve hit Nathan.

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“I’m at the back of the car and he’s hit me, that’s when I heard something dropping on the floor but I didn’t see what.

“The guy ran back to his car and that’s when Nathan has shattered the back windscreen of my car.

“I ran around the front of the car and then Nathan was like ‘I f*****g stabbed him’ and I was like ‘with what knife?’.

“I was just there shaking, I didn’t know what to do – he’d just told me he stabbed someone.

“I came here because I was worried I was involved in the incident – I thought the best thing to do was give all the evidence.”

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Part of a transcript from an interview with Eyles on July 24 was then read out.

He told police during that interview that he never saw a knife and that ‘as far as he was aware’, Nathan did not bring a knife with him.

A large part of the trial was interrupted yesterday after an air conditioning problem.

Judge Ian Pringle QC said: “When the court was opened this morning, the air conditioning was pumping out between 300 and 600 per cent air than it should be, and the noise was deafening.”

Meanwhile, Braim appeared at court after finishing his self-isolation period.

The trial continues.