A Dagenham man allegedly recruited and directed two teenage boys to carry out a murder in a revenge hit after he was stabbed himself as part of a feud, a court has heard.

Waste removal boss Shaian Forde, 25, is alleged to have 'arranged and facilitated' the killing of 18-year-old Santino Dymiter, who was 'cornered, stabbed and slashed nine times' by two machete-wielding attackers in Plaistow in August last year, the Old Bailey heard.

Prosecutor Duncan Atkinson QC told jurors Mr Forde, of Beech Gardens, had been knifed six days earlier in an attack he suggested was part of dispute between two groups of young men and did not emerge from a 'clear blue sky'.

Mr Forde and two youths, one aged 17 and the other 15, deny murder. The teenagers cannot be named for legal reasons.

Both accused teenagers are said to have been wearing electronic tags at the time of the alleged murder, the court heard.

Opening the trial on Friday, Mr Atkinson said Mr Dymiter was set upon outside his friend's house in Chadd Green at 3.20pm on August 26 after two attackers emerged from a stolen Ford S-Max car with blacked-out windows.

He said: 'He was attacked by two young males, both dressed in black, their faces masked by black bandanas.

'Both were wearing latex gloves and each was carrying a large machete.'

The prosecutor said Mr Dymiter's friend managed to shelter indoors but 'he was not so fortunate'.

He added: 'He was cornered, stabbed and slashed nine times. The fatal wound was a 12.3cm stab wound, which entered through his back, into his abdomen and severed veins and arteries.

'The prosecution allege that Santino Dymiter's murder was in pursuit of an ongoing dispute and was part of an attack in revenge for that attack on Forde on August 20 2019.

'The prosecution case is that the build up to the attack further shows that the murder was arranged and facilitated by Forde, and that it was under his direction that it was committed.'

Mr Atkinson alleged the car used had been stolen two nights beforehand by Mr Forde, had its number plates changed and was intended for use in the attack.

He said scientific analysis of the car and examination of its movements, both through CCTV and automatic number plate recognition, 'forms a part of the web of evidence in which those involved have now been caught'.

Both accused teenagers were said to be wearing electronic tags at the time of the alleged murder which, combined with CCTV and phone cell-site data, 'allows for their movements to be traced'.

After one youth was arrested and put into a young offender's institution, staff allegedly overheard him 'boasting in brutal and graphic terms about the murder', the prosecutor added.

Both youths also deny one count of possessing a bladed article, namely a machete.

A fourth defendant, Robyn Willson, from Clacton in Essex, denies one count of assisting an offender.

The 26-year-old is alleged to have played an 'active part' in 'trying to shield' one of the youths after the alleged murder.

The trial continues.