Hoogstraten murder plot charge is dropped

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A charge of conspiracy to murder a business associate was dropped yesterday against a property tycoon accused of hiring two hitmen to kill him.

The jury at the Old Bailey hearing the case against Nicholas van Hoogstraten, one of Britain's wealthiest men, was told by Mr Justice Newman that it should concentrate on only one charge, that of murder.

Mr van Hoogstraten, 58, of Uckfield, East Sussex, is jointly charged with David Croke, 59, of Brighton, and Robert Knapp, 55, of County Limerick, with the murder of Mohammed Sabir Raja in July 1999 at his home in Sutton, Surrey. They deny the charge.

Mr Justice Newman told jurors in his summing up that they could "put a line through count one", which had alleged that Mr van Hoogstraten conspired with Mr Croke and Mr Knapp to murder Mr Raja between 1 January and 3 July 1999. "Ignore it," he said. "The conspiracy charge was very properly placed and the fact that it goes follows the fact that all the evidence has now been heard and count one adds nothing to count two [murder]."

The judge said that to convict the tycoon of murder the jury had to be sure of three things: that Mr Knapp had committed murder; that Mr van Hoogstraten counselled, advised, ordered, encouraged or persuaded Mr Knapp to do it; and that the murder was in the scope of what Mr van Hoogstraten had counselled, advised, ordered, encouraged or persuaded Mr Knapp to do.

The jury is expected to begin its deliberations today.