Brothers deny charges over fatal Brighton seafront crash

Two brothers have denied charges over a seafront road crash in which three men were struck by a BMW in Brighton.

Promising young footballer Suel Miguel Monteiro Delgado, 20, suffered serious head injuries in the crash and died in hospital.

Two other men – aged 18 and 22 – were taken to hospital with serious injuries following the crash in East Sussex on December 1 2019.

Appearing at Lewes Crown Court on Thursday over Skype, brothers Iftekhar Khondaker, 34, and Irfan Khondaker, 26, both pleaded not guilty to all charges.

Iftekhar Khondaker, of Caithness Road, Mitcham, denied murder and two counts of attempted murder.

Irfan Khondaker denied a charge of assisting an offender.

Mr Delgado had been a promising young footballer for West Sussex-based Loxwood FC, who play in the Southern Combination Premier Division.

A large area of Marine Parade in Brighton was cordoned off when the murder investigation began.

In a statement released by police after the incident, Mr Delgado’s family said: “Suel was a beloved son, brother and friend. He always took care of his family and he will be sadly missed.”

A fundraising page to help with the costs of his funeral raised a staggering £12,885 against a target of just £200.

Judge Christine Laing QC said the trial is likely to last four weeks and has been scheduled for August 3.

But she told the hearing: “I have to stress that is of course a provisional date.

“At present we have no idea when we are going to be able to restart jury trials.”