Neighbour who witnessed men accused of Northampton murder run away heard 'giggling' as gang fled

Five men were spotted running from Cordwainer House in the minutes after Reece Ottaway's alleged murder.

A trial is underway over the alleged murder of Reece Ottaway, who died in a ground floor flat at Cordwainer House, St James, in the early hours of a February morning this year.

At Northampton Crown Court today (October 2), a neighbour from the third floor of the flat block told the jury how he was woken that night to "what sounded like a door being done in".

He told the court: "I woke up because the security door on the ground floor was banging.

Reece Ottaway, 23, was stabbed to death in the early hours of February 1.

"I'm used to hearing noises in the flats and my girlfriend told me to ignore - but I knew there was something different about this time.

"Suddenly, there were like these two loud bangs like a door going through. I also heard a glass break"

What the man was hearing was reportedly the moment the five men standing trial for Reece's murder kicked down the door to the 23-year-old's flat before bursting in to rob him of drugs and money.

In the events that unfolded, Reece was fatally stabbed seven times.

A witness reportedly heard "a giggling sound" as the five men ran from the scene.

Around three minutes after being woken up, the neighbour looked out his window to see five men in dark clothing running from the house.

He also told the court how one of the men was being 'awkwardly dragged' by another, as if he was injured.

It is understood one of the five men charged with murder sustained a severe leg injury during the events in Cordwainer House.

A defence barrister asked the neighbour: "What did you hear?"

He replied: "It sounded like giggles. But it could have been anything. It happened so fast. It was just a split second of it."

Today, the court also heard from a forensic pathologist who described the horrific extent of Reece's fatal injuries.

The 23-year-old was stabbed a total of seven times during the events in Cordwainer House.

The court has previously heard how Reece sold cannabis out of the flat in Cordwainer and was staying in the living room with his girlfriend at the time of the attack.

The five men charged with Mr Ottaway's murder are:- Cameron Higgs, 20, of Chestnut Close, Milton Malsor- Jordan Crowley (also known as Jordan Kimpton), 21, of Sam Harrison Way, Duston- Alfie Drage, 20, of Clover Street, Upton- Adison Smith, 20, of no fixed address- Ethan Stirling, aged 21, of Baukewell Court, LumbertubsAll of the defendants except Ethan Stirling have already pleaded guilty to conspiring to rob Reece that night. They all deny murder.