THE father of a man who dumped a dead body on a Bradford moor had “no intention whatsoever” to plot with his son to dispose of or burn the corpse, a jury has heard.

Tyron Charles, 29, was shot dead at a smallholding off Foster Park View, Denholme, on September 6 last year.

James Sutcliffe, also 29, is on trial at Bradford Crown Court accused of murdering Mr Charles, but he claims that it was another man, Adrian Williams, who pulled the trigger and accidentally killed his friend.

The trial jury has heard that Mr Charles’s body was buried in a bog off Nab Water Lane near Oxenhope, with police only discovering its location after secretly bugging conversations in prison in which James Sutcliffe spoke of the crime to his parents – Kevin and Janet Sutcliffe, aged 60 and 62.

In the lead-up to the shooting, James Sutcliffe was being pursued by Mr Williams and Mr Charles for an £800 debt.

Giving evidence yesterday, Kevin Sutcliffe said he had been present when his son was first arrested on September 16, but then had not seen him until a visit to HMP Hull on October 9.

The court has heard that after Mr Charles was shot in a shipping container on the smallholding, James Sutcliffe agreed to hide the body, but said he did so acting “in fear” of Mr Williams.

Alasdair Campbell, defending Kevin Sutcliffe, said that during the first prison visit, James Sutcliffe had described the location of the body, saying “yeah, it’s up on the moors.”

Asked whether he had known what had happened to Mr Charles prior to October 9, Kevin Sutcliffe replied: “No sir, not at all.”

When asked his thoughts on what his son had told him, he said: “I don’t think I can explain it sir. We just cried all the way home.”

The jury heard that on October 11, after police had discovered the body, Kevin Sutcliffe was re-arrested.

He said that on the morning of that day, he and his wife had driven on Nab Water Lane, but only to try and get from Oxenhope to Halifax to return a borrowed car.

Kevin Sutcliffe said he had got out of the vehicle, but only to go behind a wall to try and go to the toilet.

Mr Campbell asked: “Did you specifically go looking for the body of Tyron Charles?”, to which the defendant replied: “No I did not, no I did not.”

On his arrest, the court heard that Kevin Sutcliffe was shown forensic evidence from the shipping container where Mr Charles was killed.

When asked by Mr Campbell: “How did you think it looked for James at this point?”, he replied: “Very bad, very bad.”

Kevin Sutcliffe accepted he had lied to police during the investigations into Mr Charles’s death, and when asked why, said: “I was scared for him (James). I just wanted to press a button for everything to go away.”

The jury heard that in a conversation in prison on October 10, Kevin Sutcliffe said to his son that he “had a little job to do.”

He told him: “You can see the bag. He’s still there, they’ll still find him. He just needs to be gone.”

Asked whether he had ever intended to act on any of the things said in conversation with his son, Kevin Sutcliffe said: “Not whatsoever.”

Questioned why he had said them, he told the court: “Just to help him. I shouldn’t have done it. I couldn’t stop what he said to me. I didn’t want to know that.”

Under cross-examination, James Sutcliffe had earlier said that his parents hadn’t been involved in any plan to move or get rid of the body, saying: “They were just saying stuff to make me feel a bit better.”

He then reiterated that it was Mr Williams who had shot Mr Charles, telling the jury: “Adie pulled the gun on me, I pulled it away, it hit Tyron.”

James Sutcliffe denies a charge of murder. All three defendants, of Hill Crest Road, Denholme, deny a conspiracy to pervert the course of justice.

The trial continues.