THE younger brother of Barry Stone said he was desperate for his 'best friend' to turn his life around after his release from jail, a month before killing his ex-girlfriend.

Andrew Stone, formerly from Padgate, gave evidence on the second day of the inquest into the murder of Nicola Sutton held at Warrington Coroner's Court.

The self-employed electrician said Stone had not had many girlfriends before his ex-wife Sarah Marshall and 22-year-old Nicola, but neither of these women were 'right' for him, Andrew believed.

He said: "There was only Sarah before really. He got to know Nicola and love her. We all thought she was great but I remember at the time I didn't think she was right for Barry.

"The same with Sarah. She wasn't the type of girl Barry needed. I know what Barry was like - trust with girls was the main thing.

"It was a weird relationship. It was volatile."

Mr Stone said his brother had fallen in with a bad crowd after their parents divorced when they were youngsters and they moved to Latchford.

The inquest heard that Stone had first been in trouble in 1992 for attempted theft and received a five-year jail term in 1994 for burglary. He served three and met Sarah Marshall shortly after his release.

Andrew, a dad-of-one, said: "Sending him to prison didn't do him any good. Coming out of prison the first time, he has never been the same."

Mr Stone confirmed his brother, who he affectionately called 'kidder', had been a drug-user and had often turned to him when he got into trouble with distraught, late night visits from him not being uncommon.

He said he was hurt when it was his friend Andrew Vosper, known as BFG, that Stone turned to when he was 'losing' it the night of Nicola's murder.

He added: "I find it hard to believe that they were all in the flat and not doing anything. If I was there it wouldn't have happened. I would have calmed him down whatever happened."

After Stone's release from prison in August 2006, the brothers had an emotional reunion and Stone told his younger sibling he was going to change, not see Nicola again and stop taking narcotics.

Mr Stone said: "We had a good chat and a cuddle and he was adament.

"He said he was going to sort his head out. I said 'I'm giving you a job and you are going to move on' and he was pretty certain that was going to happen."

The inquest heard that Mr Stone and his family were 'fuming' when they learned Stone had seen Nicola again.

In the early hours of September 26, a blood-soaked Stone turned up with an injured hand at his brother's family home demanding his car.

Mr Stone said he refused to let him have the keys and instead chose to drive him where he wanted to go, not realising he had stabbed Nicola to death in a frenzied attack an hour previously.

"I could tell something had happened but I wasn't exactly sure what," Mr Stone said.

"I had not seen him like that in my life before. He was clearly out of his head on drink and drugs, mumbling things and had complete paranoia."

The inquest heard Mr Stone drove as far as Knutsford before turning around for home and dropping his brother off at his request in Orford.

He called the police a short time later concerned with his brothers' actions.

Stone was spotted by DS Gary Massey and PC Mike Robinson some 16 hours later in an alleyway off O'Leary Street.

DS Massey said he saw Stone, who was armed with a large knife, inject what the murderer had believed at the time to be a fatal dose of heroin before they were able to arrest him.

The inquest continues.

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