A MAN accused of attempted murder “feared for his safety” before driving his car into a victim and leaving him with skull fractures and a brain injury, a court has heard.

Joshua Lloyd, 28, of Oak Green, Billericay, and Joshua Littlechild, 25, of Delphian Way, Bishops Stortford are standing trial charged with attempted murder and aggravated taking of the vehicle.

The trial follows an incident at Billericay Train Station on March 18 last year when a car was driven at a group of people, hitting one person whose “head went through the windscreen”.

Littlechild was driving the car at the time, and yesterday told Basildon Crown Court he “feared for his safety” during the incident and acted “rashly”.

Giving evidence yesterday, Littlechild said he and Lloyd were in an encounter with the victim ten minutes earlier when Lloyd was “punched in the face”.

Later Littlechild and Lloyd went back to their car and drove towards the station to meet women.

The court heard they encountered the men again who allegedly surrounded their car with the victim approaching with his “hands down his trousers”.

Littlechild said: “That’s when I panicked, I was trying to get away from an aggressive situation and acted rashly.

Littlechild drove the car into the group colliding with the victim.

Littlechild said: “I was fearing violence and I acted panicked and rash, I did not know the victim before that evening.

“Mr Lloyd did not goad me on, I was afraid because they assaulted him which happened around ten minutes before.

“I did not have any intentions to kill.”

The court also heard Littlechild and Lloyd were drinking alcohol before the incident and Littlechild also took cocaine while driving the car.

The car was a stolen vehicle that Littlechild purchased for a “few hundred pounds” and could not lock or unlock.

It was also confirmed in court that Littlechild pleaded guilty to section 18 GBH and aggravated vehicle taking.

The trial is centred on whether Littlechild and Lloyd intended to kill the victim.

The trial continues.