A man on trial accused of gunning down a Bradford taxi driver told the jury he was in London at the time of the murder.

Ricardo Linton, 45, denies murdering Mohammed Basharat and attempting to murder Jamshad Khan in the offices of Little Horton Private Hire almost 20 years ago.

Mr Basharat, 33, a driver with the taxi firm, was shot twice at the address off Park Lane in Bradford on the evening of Saturday, October 20, 2001.

He was struck by two bullets, in the head and the mouth, and died where he fell.

Giving evidence at Bradford Crown Court, Linton said he was in London buying cocaine for his drugs collective that weekend.

He also denied being involved in a road rage incident with Mr Basharat the day before the murder.

Asked by his barrister, Joe Stone QC: “Did you pull the trigger killing Mohammed Ba-sharat?” Linton replied: “No I did not.”

He told the court he was born in Jamaica and moved to Brooklyn, New York, after his mother had relocated there.

In late 2000, he came to the United Kingdom using a false name and date of birth.

He went to London and then moved to an address in Bradford.

On May 18, 2001, he applied for leave to remain in the United Kingdom as a student and it was granted.

Linton said he was part of a drug trafficking operation that sourced crack cocaine in London to sell on.

On Friday, October 19, 2001, he drove his Blue Honda Accord to the capital to buy a “brick” of cocaine.

He said he stayed in London over the weekend, buying the drugs on the Sunday.

On that day he heard that a taxi driver had been shot and killed in Bradford.

He said he stayed in London for a further three weeks before returning to Jamaica, leaving some of his clothes behind in Bradford.

He was extradited from the United States to Britain on September 25 last year to stand trial for the murder of Mr Basharat.

The trial continues.