Acid attack accused says he was buying stolen car

A drug dealer accused of murdering another dealer with acid has told a jury he had been buying a stolen car and had nothing to do with the attack.

Danny Cahalane, 38, was seriously injured at his home on Lipson Road, Plymouth, on 21 February 2025 and died in hospital on 3 May. Seven men and two women are on trial at Winchester Crown Court.

Israel Augustus, 26, from London, accepted he was at the scene of the attack, but when asked if he had taken part in it, he told the court: "Not at all."

Augustus is charged with murder and an alternative charge of manslaughter and being part of an organised crime group.

The court has heard the attack was over a £120,000 debt Cahalane owed to his drugs boss Ryan Kennedy, known as Frost.

Augustus, who said he sold drugs via Whatsapp, told the jury he had never heard of Kennedy and had travelled by car from London to Plymouth with fellow defendant Isanah Sungum to buy a stolen Renault for a bargain price.

Sungum returned to London after they got to Plymouth where Augustus said he had met 23-year old Kelvin Asante, who gave him the fob for the Renault.

When Asante, from Eresby Place in London, asked him for "a favour" to collect some money from an address in the city, he agreed.

Augustus said at 03:28 on 21 February he drove the Renault to the back of Lipson Road and reversed into Opie Lane at the rear of Cahalane's house.

He told the jury there was "a bit of chit chat" with Asante "about how long he would take" to get the money.

The court heard CCTV showed Augustus throwing away a knife in a household waste bin. Augustus said he had spotted it on the rear seat of the car and threw it away, telling the jury "it was not coming back to London".

Augustus said he then followed Asante into Cahalane's house, admitting he planned to rob him of the cash once he returned.

Once inside the house he described seeing Asante and Cahalane who was shouting, and hearing "a lot of profanity".

The court has heard previously that Cahalane described two men attacking him in his first floor bedroom with acid and a screwdriver.

Augustus told the jury he had stayed downstairs and denied taking part in the attack.

He later said he had been involved with drugs, stealing cars and supplying drugs into prisons, but he never got involved in violence.

"I'm a drug dealer, I want smooth sailing, I don't want to get noticed by the police," he told the court.

Augustus said he went back to the car and Asante later returned with burns, an acidic smell on him, and lacerations to his hand. Augustus said: "I assumed that he had used acid."

The pair's car later broke down on a motorway and they wandered around Chippenham and got a lift before making their way back to London.

Paris Wilson, 35, and Jude Hill, 43, from Plymouth, Abdulrasheed Adedoja, 23, Israel Augustus, 26, Isanah Sungum, 22, Ramarnee Bakas, 23 and Brian Kalemba, 23, all from London, are charged with murder and an alternative charge of manslaughter.

Wilson, Adedoja, Bakas, Augustus, Sungum and Kalemba have also been charged with being part of an organised crime gang, along with and Arrone Mukuna, 25, and Jean Mukuna, 23 from London.

Adedoja, Bakas, Wilson, Jean Mukuna and Arrone Mukuna are also charged with attempted kidnapping.

The trial continues.

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