A teenage boy claimed he was ordered to wash "every tile" in a shower cubicle just hours after it had been allegedly used by two men and another youth now on trial for murder, a court heard.

The youngster, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, told a jury that he was then instructed to clean the whole bathroom in the holiday chalet in Sheppey and to "do it quickly".

Maidstone Crown Court heard the boy later told police he had noticed a "browny red" liquid in the shower and "knew" it was blood.

He said he assumed the trio had been in a fight.

The three alleged to have taken a shower just hours before the battered and half-naked body of Gary Pocock was discovered on August 7 last year are Matthew Terry, 21, Christopher Bones, 20, and a 16-year-old who also cannot be named for legal reasons.

It is alleged they were told to shower by a third man accused of Mr Pocock's murder, Mark Terry.

The 44-year-old father-of- five was then said to have washed their clothes by hand in the chalet sink.

Mr Pocock's body was found less than four hours later on a beach off Warden Bay Road in Leysdown.

It is alleged he was "savagely" beaten with two baseball bats, one of which broke in two.

The jury was told at the start of the trial that Mark Terry is accused of having organised the attack on the 34-year-old from Barking in east London, as "punishment" following an accusation he had molested a girl.

Prosecutor Jonathan Higgs QC said the caretaker, who was staying in a chalet in Leysdown, was lured to a secluded part of the beach and set upon by Mark Terry and his son Matthew, both of Grantham Road, Manor Park, east London, family friend Bones, of Dorothy Gardens, Dagenham in Essex, and the youth, who was 15 at the time and from Sheerness.

A fourth man, Jamie West, 19, of Cliff View Gardens, Warden, was not part of the group at the beach but is alleged to have known about the planned beating and provided one of the baseball bats.

All five deny murder, as well as perverting the course of justice by making two false statements to police.

Mark Terry's wife, Lisa, 32, also of Grantham Road, Manor Park, denies perverting the course of justice by telling a witness to withhold information from the police.

The court heard Mark Terry, Matthew Terry, Bones and the youth had gone out drinking with Mr Pocock at about 10pm on August 6.

However, Mr Pocock was not with them when they returned to the chalet at 2am.

The jury was told the two younger men and the youth then allegedly took it in turns to shower before placing their clothes in the sink.

Matthew Terry was later described to police as being scared while Bones was "on edge".

The court heard the boy was asked to clean the bathroom at about 11am on August 7.

In his recorded police interview, which was played to the jury, he said: "I had to clean all the tiles inside the shower and there was a browny red liquid. I just thought they had got into a fight."

The boy added he had to clean the entire bathroom in the two-bed chalet, which was owned by Mark Terry.

"He said: 'You have to do it quickly.'. He told me to clean every tile carefully and, when I say every tile, I mean every tile."

The boy continued: "He (Mark Terry) told me how to do each tile. He said to clean it with hot water. He told me to wipe every tile.

"I had to clean everything. I had to clean the sink especially. He told me to clean the tiles, the shower, the sink. He then said: 'Forget that, clean the whole bathroom' " - teenage witness

"I had to clean everything. I had to clean the sink especially. He told me to clean the tiles, the shower, the sink. He then said: 'Forget that, clean the whole bathroom.'."

However, the boy told police he had not cleaned the floor even though he thought Mark Terry believed otherwise.

He added that he heard at about 2pm that day on a radio news bulletin that a body had been found on the beach.

It was identified as Mr Pocock 36 hours after its discovery when his partner, Wendy Polley, recognised the description given to the media of a distinctive ring he was wearing and contacted police.

The trial continues.

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