Lindsay Birbeck: Defendant will not give evidence in murder trial

A teenager accused of murdering a teaching assistant has chosen not to give evidence in his defence.

The naked body of Lindsay Birbeck, 47, wrapped in two plastic bags, was discovered in a shallow grave at the back of Accrington Cemetery, Lancashire, on August 24 last year.

Twelve days earlier, the mother-of-two and keep-fit enthusiast left her home in Burnley Road, Accrington, for a walk to a nearby area of woodland known as the Coppice.

Defendant says he was paid to move the body

It is alleged the 17-year-old defendant, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, killed Mrs Birbeck shortly after she entered the Coppice and concealed her body in a blue wheelie bin which he dragged across to the cemetery five days later.

After Mrs Birbeck was discovered, detectives issued to the media a CCTV still of a male pulling a wheelie bin along Burnley Road and the defendant, then aged 16, went on to voluntarily attend a police station with family members.

In a prepared statement, he admitted moving the bin and burying the body but said he was not involved in Mrs Birbeck's death.

He said he was walking alone in the area when he was approached by a stranger who promised him "a lot of money" if he disposed of a body.

The Crown say the "stranger" does not exist and that the youth was responsible for Mrs Birbeck's murder.

A post-mortem examination concluded the cause of death was neck injuries.

Severe compressive force appeared to have been used, according to a Home Office pathologist, which could have been done in several ways including through stamping or kicking, or kneeling on the front of the neck.

The teenager has pleaded guilty to the offence of assisting an offender, which the Crown does not accept, but denies murder and manslaughter.