A man accused of trying to buy a PlayStation 4 with fake £50 notes before robbing it from the seller swatted away claims it was him.

Ezekiel Amusan, 20, denies robbery and tendering counterfeit currency. Prosecutors claim he stole the PlayStation 4 in Cowley after arranging via online marketplace Gumtree to buy the games console for £300.

Taking to the witness stand at Oxford Crown Court on Friday, the youngster denied ever being at the Normandy Crescent flat where the robbery was allegedly committed on September 5, 2020, or even having a Gumtree account.

Addressing questions about why his fingerprints were found on forged £50 notes used to try and pay for the PlayStation as well as on an envelope in which the six notes were stuffed, Amusan suggested he had handled cash notes during the filming of a music video posted to YouTube in the month before the alleged robbery.

Footage from the rap video, entitled Mello x Dudus x Lito - Don't Reason, was played to the court.

Clips of masked men singing and waggling their hands to the beat were interspersed with shots of cash and what appeared to be top-label spirits. The defendant picked himself out as one of the masked men.

thisisoxfordshire: Amusan said he may have come into contact with the £50 notes during the filming of a music video, which was posted to YouTube a month before the alleged robbery; circled, the man Amusan picked out as himself Picture: YOUTUBEAmusan said he may have come into contact with the £50 notes during the filming of a music video, which was posted to YouTube a month before the alleged robbery; circled, the man Amusan picked out as himself Picture: YOUTUBE

Cross-examining him on Friday afternoon, prosecutor Rose Slowe questioned why the fact he had been in the music video had only come to light part-way through the trial.

It was not in a ‘defence case statement’, setting out his defence to the allegations, filed before the case began and was first mentioned in an addendum defence case statement filed at the end of the first day of the trial.

“At no point prior to yesterday afternoon when the jury had gone home had you mentioned you were in this music video,” she said

He replied: “Yes, I never mentioned it.”

“That is because you only thought of that explanation yesterday. That was during your trial," Ms Slowe said.

The defendant said: “It was during the trial, yes. I’ve been speculating for so long but I’ve never actually thought it was going to be a music video.”

The prosecutor countered: “This explanation is a lie, isn’t it? And a lie that you’ve thought up now to try and fit the forensic evidence.” He denied it.

Earlier, he told his barrister that he’d injured his right fist in a fight in August 2020 and so would not have been able to punch the victim of the robbery as alleged.

thisisoxfordshire: CCTV shown to the jury on Thursday showed the alleged robber jump into a silver hatchback Picture: CPSCCTV shown to the jury on Thursday showed the alleged robber jump into a silver hatchback Picture: CPS

Amusan, of Carpenter Close, Oxford, denied any involvement in the incidence on September 5. He said he did not have a Gumtree account and did not use the nickname ‘Nana’, said to have been the name the robber used when he set up the meeting on Gumtree.

The trial continues, with the jury expected to retire to consider their verdicts on Monday.

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This story was written by Tom Seaward. He joined the team in 2021 as Oxfordshire's court and crime reporter.  

To get in touch with him email: Tom.Seaward@newsquest.co.uk

Follow him on Twitter: @t_seaward