Police did a deal with a murder suspect and fitted him with a wire tap to get information about his co-defendant, a court heard yesterday.

Lawyers for Kirk Mundy, jointly accused of killing Canadian teenager Rebecca Middleton, claimed Police agreed not to charge him with the murder if he testified against his co-defendant Justis Smith.

They claimed the Attorney General's Chambers agreed to charge Mundy with being "an accessory after the fact'', following the murder in July 1996.

Smith was charged with the murder at the time and is due to appear in court next month so a trial date can be set.

But 23-year-old Mundy, serving five years in jail after being convicted of the lesser offence, was only charged with the murder earlier this month.

And his legal team began a judicial review hearing yesterday, accusing Attorney General Elliott Mottley of an "abuse of process'' and arguing the new murder charge should be dropped.

Mundy's chief lawyer, former Attorney General Saul Froomkin, also said his client could not now receive a fair trial because so much time had passed.

But Bermuda's new Solicitor General William Pearce denied any deal had been struck with Mundy.

He said: "You will not see any evidence of an agreement, you will not see any evidence of a premise, you will not see any evidence of a representation that we would not proceed with a murder charge if further evidence came to light.

"There is no evidence to support a reasonable expectation on the part of Mundy that we would not so proceed.'' He accused Mr. Froomkin of a "fishing expedition'' and said: "New evidence has come to light which justifies the charge of murder against Mundy.'' Puisne Judge Richard Ground, who rejected calls from Mr. Froomkin to bring the Attorney General into court, directed lawyers not to give details of the alleged medical evidence against Mundy which emerged last month.

Seventeen-year-old Rebecca, of Belleville, Ontario, was found with fatal stab wounds on Ferry Reach, St. George's, after a night out with a friend. Mr.

Froomkin called Mundy's original trial lawyer Mark Pettingill to give evidence at yesterday's hearing, which continues on Monday.

Mr. Pettingill said Mundy had given several Police statements and claimed he had had "consensual sex'' with the murder victim.

He said Mundy also claimed he saw Smith "punching her in the face'' and "noticed Smith throw a knife off the bridge''.

Mr. Pettingill added: "Mr. Mundy suggested to me that in order to corroborate or support his story, he would be willing to wear a wire.

"I understand him to mean a tape recording wire. He asked me about this and he said he would be willing to be placed in a cell with the other man.'' Mr. Pettingill said Mundy made the offer at Prospect Police headquarters following a reconstruction of Rebecca's murder.

He added: "He told me that he felt `Smith would admit to what he did', quote: `Like it went down'.

"As a result of that I went down the hall to the incident room, to Chief Insp. Adams' office, where Insp. Adams, Insp. Crockwell and Insp. Legay Farley were present.

"I informed these officers about what Mr. Mundy had suggested to me. There was some general conversation between the officers and myself about that. I recall that Chief Insp. Adams particularly was reluctant.

"They did say they would discuss the matter further and with the Attorney General's Chambers. That was it.'' Mr. Froomkin asked: "Did the applicant, in fact some time later...some weeks later, actually have a conversation with Mr. Smith which was electronically taped?'' Mr. Pettingill added: "Yes. He did in fact wear a wire and was placed in the cell some weeks later.'' The lawyer said he bumped into Supt. Vic Richmond after the incident room meeting and told him it would be "a waste of time'' if Mundy was charged with murder because "his evidence would be of no value''.

Mr. Pettingill said: "Mr. Richmond said to me that they would be meeting with the Attorney General's Chambers that afternoon to discuss the charges.

"I reminded him that Mr. Mundy had given these statements and was prepared and willing to give evidence for the Crown against the other individual and that was on the basis that he was charged as an accessory after the fact.'' Court hears of Mundy deal He said there was a special Magistrates' Court sitting the next day to lay the charges against Mundy and Smith. Mr. Pettingill added: "I was given the pink charge slip, which I still have, when I walked into the Magistrates' courtroom, by, I recall, Insp. Crockwell, who in handing it to me made a comment along the lines of: `You have got your way', or `You have got what you wanted'.'' He said the original prosecutor, Khamisi Tokunbo, even pushed for a non-maximum sentence because Mundy had agreed to testify against Smith.

"Mr. Tokunbo was saying Mundy had given a witness statement and he agreed to testify against Smith `in accordance therewith'.

"The only time I recall saying to anyone that Mr. Mundy would agree to give evidence was to Supt. Vic Richmond. My only assumption would be that it had been passed on by Mr. Richmond.'' Mr. Pearce, cross-examining, asked Mr. Pettingill about a conversation he had with a Detective Constable at Somerset Police station on the night of Mundy's arrest. He asked Mr. Pettingill: "Did you say to him: `Those who speaks first gets the best deal'?'' Mr. Pettingill, who also denied "expressing his elation'' after being handed the pink charge sheet, said: "That's not how I would speak.'' Mr. Pearce had earlier failed to argue for the judicial review hearing to be scrapped despite claiming Mr. Froomkin had not followed the correct procedures.