Case against Burnley hotel owner and two ‘associates’ delayed (From Lancashire Telegraph)

Case against Burnley hotel owner and two ‘associates’ delayed

2:56pm Friday 27th January 2012 in Burnley By Chris Gee, Reporter

A JUDGE has stopped a trial in which a Burnley hotel owner and two associates are alleged to have beaten up an international finance over a £500,000 debt.

Lord Brailsford halted extortion proceedings yesterday against Mohammed Asjad, 40, of Reedley Road, Burnley, Mark Putterill, 36, of Colne Road, Nelson, and 49-year-old Ian Williams, of Station Road, Padiham.

The judge at the High Court in Edinburgh decided to stop the case because of legal issues.

But the prosecution against the three men will resume at the High Court in Edinburgh in March.

The trio are accused of beating Robert Cox, 59, at his home in Dunfermline, Fife, in November 2010 and trying to extort 3,187,618 United Arab Emirate Dirhams from him.

Mr Asjad, who owns the Keirby Hotel building in Burnley town centre, alleged that the cash – roughly £500,000 – was owed to him by Mr Cox, a Scottish-based Indian citizen.

The court had earlier heard that Mr Cox had acted as a ‘facilitator’ for Mr Asjad to buy property in the UAE.

On Thursday, Lord Brailsford heard legal arguments from the three accused men's legal teams who said that the case be halted.

They argued that an issue had emerged during the current case which meant the prosecution couldn't proceed any further at this point in time.

The judge agreed with the representations made by the defence teams – and dismissed the jury who had heard five days’ worth of evidence.

But Lord Brailsford allowed prosecutors to continue with the case against the three men.

The case will next call at the High Court in Edinburgh on March 7 when it is expected that a date for trial will be arranged.

Asjad, Putterill and Williams have been excused from attending the court on that date.