A teenager accused of double murder told a jury this morning that he didn’t commit the crime — despite having confessed to it twice on tape.

Darronte Dill said he was at home asleep when Frederick Gilbert and Maxwell Brangman were stabbed to death in St David’s early on September 21, 2008.

He claimed that Roger Lightbourne Sr. — the man whose St. David’s home he was staying at — confessed to him the next day that he carried out the killings.

Dill, 19, claimed Mr. Lightbourne Sr. called him into his bedroom and said he’d stabbed the pair after going for a walk during the night and finding them asleep in a hut near the Black Horse Tavern.

Detailing for the jury what Mr. Lightbourne Sr. allegedly told him of the attack, Dill commented: “I just couldn’t believe he was telling me something like this. At the time I thought he was just — I don’t want to say joking — I thought he was just talking about a movie or something. It didn’t seem real to me.”

The jury has previously heard that Mr. Lightbourne Sr. and his son Roger Jr. were both arrested during the Police investigation, as well as Dill. Mr. Lightbourne Sr. told the Police that Dill was the real culprit, and volunteered to initiate a conversation with him in the Police cells about it.

During that conversation — which was secretly taped by detectives hiding in the cell next door — Dill told Mr. Lightbourne Sr. he carried out the murders along with Roger Lightbourne Jr. AKA “Mister”. He said Mr. Lightbourne Sr. was at home asleep at the time.

The Police interviewed Dill on tape the following day and told him they knew about his cell confession. He then repeated it to them, but refused to name his accomplice. He denies two charges of murder, and is the sole defendant before the court.

Dill took the witness stand in his own defence at 11.30 a.m and is due to continue his testimony this afternoon. See tomorrow’s edition of The Royal Gazette for full coverage.