Serial killer accused Stephen Port 'last saw alleged victim at sex party' Published duration 28 October 2016

image copyright Julia Quenzler image caption Stephen Port told the Old Bailey about the events leading up to the death of his first alleged victim

An alleged serial killer last saw one of the men he is accused of murdering at a "sex and drugs party", a court has heard.

Stephen Port, 41, said Slovakian Gabriel Kovari, 22, moved into his flat in August 2014.

But while he said Mr Kovari was "someone I liked - a friend", he denied they had had a sexual relationship.

Mr Port denies four murders and offences of drugging, rape and sexual assault.

He told jurors at the Old Bailey that he had gone to a "sex and drugs party" in Ilford with Mr Kovari, who went home early with a man called "Dan".

It was only weeks later that he realised that Dan was the same man he had met online and arranged to meet in Barking in September 2014.

Mr Port said that when he met Daniel Whitworth he had become upset and confessed to him that he had gone with Mr Kovari to the churchyard near Mr Port's flat in Barking, east London, to have sex.

He said the pair had then "passed out", and when he woke up Mr Whitworth found Mr Kovari was dead.

image copyright . image caption Mr Port denies 29 charges including four counts of murder

The defendant told the jury: "He said when he woke, Gabriel was sleeping on his shoulder. He went to make him wake up and his head dropped into his lap. He said he tried to raise him, tried to bring him round but he couldn't. He looked like he stopped breathing.

'Angry at himself'

"He tried to give him mouth to mouth but he could not rouse him. He leaned him up against a wall. He said he panicked. He was going to call an ambulance but did not know what to do, so he left him.

Mr Port said Mr Whitworth became "angry at himself" and worried he would be caught by his DNA.

But, he said, he reassured him and urged him to explain what had happened to police.

Mr Port said Mr Whitworth suggested they "have some fun first", meaning sex and drugs.

Later, the defendant said Mr Whitworth became upset again and asked him to write something for him on a piece of paper to get it "off his chest".

Mr Port said he took down his dictation, but added in a line saying "BTW please do not blame the guy I was with last night" after joking that he might get the blame himself.

The defendant told jurors: "I thought it was just the [drugs] talking and he was just getting his emotions out of his system.

"I didn't believe he was actually going to do it. I would have stopped him. I would have done anything to prevent him doing it."

Prosecutors have argued the suicide note, which police later found on Mr Whitworth's body, was fake and an attempt to frame him for Mr Kovari's murder.