The jury in the trial over the brutal death of well-known Watford man Mujib Hakim, have heard more details about the night he was allegedly murdered.

The neighbours of Josh Lewis, who is accused of murdering the 40-year-old, told the court they were woken at 2am by digging going on in his garden in Merton Road, on the morning after Mr Hakim disappeared.

Earlier this week, the jury at St Albans Crown Court, heard Daniel Robinson and Jordan Glancy describe how they were in bed in May last year when they heard a noise outside.

Mr Robinson said: “Jordan is nosy – impossibly nosy. She said ‘Look at this’ someone is building in the garden.

“She pulled the blind up and I looked out of the window.

“We saw two blokes digging. It was very dark. We thought it was a bit late.”

The prosecution alleges the two men were Josh Lewis, who lived at the address, and his friend Kevin Keegan, who were burying the body of Mr Hakim after stabbing him 17 times.

Mr Robinson went on: “I saw someone digging a hole with a spade. I thought it was late to be doing that sort of thing.

“We saw them carry something from the house. I couldn’t say what it was.”

Police discovered Mr Hakim’s body wrapped in a curtain with legs bound after searching Lewis’s home on August 17.

They also found a “kidnap kit” in a laptop bag which contained knives, gaffer tape, scalpels and face masks among other items.

Lewis, 21, of Merton Road, Watford, denies murder and possessing a stun gun.

The jury at St Albans Crown Court were told he pleaded guilty to a charge of obstructing the coroner.

Keegan of Stroud Gate, Harrow, who is alleged to have helped him bury the body during the night, denies obstructing the coroner.

The trial continues.