February 22, 2022 5.39 pm This story is over 25 months old

Sam Davies murder trial: Car bump was ‘a sign’ to call off fatal meeting

Jameson has now finished giving evidence, Heydari due Wednesday
Sam Davies, 23, was killed in a stabbing at Coleridge Gardens in Lincoln. | Photo: Lincolnshire Police

The Sam Davies murder trial has heard that a defendant felt a “sign” to call off an arranged meeting which led to the victim dying.

Joe Jameson says he bumped his Audi A4 against a parked car as he was messaging on his phone shortly before the stabbing in Lincoln last year.

He told the jury that he was “incredibly anxious” about setting up co-defendant Eimantas Gochman to meet Mr Davies in a park between Coleridge Gardens and Browning Drive.

Jameson claims he had agreed to pay Gochman to “scare off” Mr Davies without violence after receiving death threats from him. The two had worked together as drug dealers but fallen out.

William Harbage QC, prosecuting, led Jameson through some of the dozens of calls and messages between defendants on May 27 last year.

“Nothing about you having cold feet was said in any of these calls, was it?” said Mr Harbage.

Jameson said he had made it clear to co-defendant and his cannabis supplier Daniel Heydari, who was advising him on how to go about the set-up.

“When I hit the car that was when I stopped to vocalise how I felt,” he added.

Jameson said the “ding” had happened in Goldsmith Walk when he was travelling very slowly.

“Instantly I was like ***** sake. I passed my driving test yesterday, this is a car I’ve spent loads of money on and this [the meeting] is about to happen.

“Suddenly everything that had been boiling just shot out. I sped away.

“I did say to Dan it felt like a sign, I shouldn’t do this and something’s going to go wrong.

“He made it very clear that: one, I was paying money for this; two, [Mr Davies] threatened your mum; three, he knows where you live, he knows where your mum lives; four, are you just going to take that? If you don’t do anything, you shouldn’t be in this industry and I’m going to think much less of you.

“He convinced me quite heavily to continue.”

Mr Davies was very late for the agreed 10pm meeting. Jameson said he was scared to tell Heydari that he messaged Gochman to tell him to leave and he would pay him for the wasted turn-out.

However, Mr Davies was stabbed twice just after 10.45pm. He died in hospital several hours later. 

Jameson says when he was told by Gochman that things had gone wrong, he told him never to call him again and ditched his phone.

Mr Harbage referred to covertly recorded conversations between Jameson and Heydari in a custody van on the way to court in May last year.

“You say ‘it’s looking like it’s going the whole nine yards but, hey, that’s what we were expecting.’

“Tell the jury what you meant by ‘that’s what we were expecting.’”

Jameson said: “This was the second or third day in custody. We’d both realised that we weren’t going to get bail.

“As soon as I was arrested at gunpoint on suspicion of murder, I knew this wasn’t going to be a case where I was going to be getting out anytime soon.

“I’d come to terms with the fact I was going to be sticking around for the long haul.”

Mr Harbage said: “Or does it mean the two of you planned this together, you thought there was a pretty good chance you might get arrested and you would go to trial and try and talk yourself out of it?”

Jameson denied that.

“Because that’s the reality of this case, isn’t it Mr Jameson?” added Mr Harbage. “You and Heydari set this thing up, put the ‘hit’ out and you got Billy Gill to help and Gochman carried it out.

“You adopted one story and changed it to another to try and save your own skin.” 

Jameson said: “What I’m saying is the truth. I will never stop saying that.”

Mr Harbage said Jameson now knew from the trial that Heydari claims Jameson borrowed his phone to send “dipped up” (stab) messages and that Gochman says Jameson gave him the knife.

“You’re all fighting among yourselves now to save your own skin,” he added.

Jameson replied: “I’m purely here to say what happened. If blame is put on other people, that is just how it happened.

“I’m not doing that on purpose to bring anybody down instead of me.”

All seven Lincoln defendants face one count of murder, which they all deny.

They are Billy Gill, 21, of Hatcliffe Gardens; Daniel Heydari, 25, of Chestnut Street; Joe Jameson, 24, of Whitehall Terrace; Eimantas Gochman, 20, of Sturton Close; Eric Kesel, 19, of Browning Drive; and Charlie Wakefield, 21, of Broxholme Gardens.

A 17-year-old boy cannot be legally identified due to his age.

Jameson is also accused of making a threat to kill, which he denies.

The trial continues.

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