After years of arguments over the siting of garden fences, dumping of building materials and children playing behind the house, a whitebearded man grabbed an eight-inch knife and plunged it into his neighbour’s back, a court was told.

The deadly end to a long-running feud in the heart of Middle England happened one afternoon last July when Habib Khan emerged from his home and hit Keith Brown, a father of seven, with a knife handle, before stabbing him with the blade.

Mr Brown’s son, Brandon, 14, watched as his father was killed. Another witness saw Mr Khan hand the bloody weapon to an Asian woman in ethnic clothing who disappeared towards the family home.

The knife has never been found. The bad feeling between the Khan family and their next-door neighbours in Stoke-on-Trent was outlined by David Jackson, prosecuting, at Stafford Crown Court.

“These two families had lived effectively next door to each other for five to six years prior to the events,” Mr Jackson said. “Over much of that time there had been problems between the families.”

Mr Brown, 52, and his partner, Julia Barker, mother of his children, lived in adjoining homes in the Normacot district of Stoke. The disagreements arose after the Khans built a house on the plot next door.

“These disputes rumbled on long after building work had been finished,” Mr Jackson said.

The Khans installed closed-circuit TV cameras to record what happened in front of their neighbours’ homes.

After Mr Brown was killed, police seized footage from the Khans’ computer. It shows at 4pm on July 6, 2007, Mr Brown coming up his garden path and standing at the gate. Mr Khan’s sons, Azir Habib Saddique and Khazir Habib Saddique, in their 20s, can be seen getting out of a car and a struggle begins with Mr Brown.

Mr Khan then appears to leap over the garden fence and rush towards the fighting men.

“Mr Brown sustained a stab injury,” Mr Jackson said. “Mr Khan had no lawful excuse for the attack. His intention was murderous.” Mr Brown suffered a single stab wound five inches into his back. Mr Khan told police under interview: “I pushed the knife in a little bit into Mr Brown,” He insisted that his neighbour had fallen the rest of the way on to the blade.

Mr Brown’s son, Ashley Barker, 19, emerged from his house when he heard the uproar. He needed stitches to his head after being beaten with a metal bar by one of Mr Khan’s sons, the jury was told.

A videotape was played to the court showing Brandon Barker being interviewed by police the day after his father was killed.

The boy said that he saw Mr Khan’s sons start attacking his father. He then saw Mr Khan approach carrying the sharp kitchen knife, used for cutting meat. “There were three Asians there,” he said. “They were all around him.”

Anthony Barker, defending Mr Khan, suggested that Mr Brown’s family resented the Khans building a house next door to their home, harboured a grudge and used racial abuse.

Brandon Barker said: “There has been trouble between my family and his family.” He denied knowing that his father had threatened to kill Mr Khan.

Mr Khan pleads not guilty to murder. Mr Khan and his son Azir Habib Saddique deny unlawfully and maliciously wounding Ashley Barker. Khazir Habib Saddique has pleaded guilty to wounding Ashley Barker.

The trial continues.

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