A “rich” and “eccentric” American died when he was chased into the path of a van by a pub landlord carrying an ironing board, the Old Bailey heard this morning.
Charles Hickox, 53, was seen “running for his life” before being hit by the Mercedes van in Hampton Court Road on September 7 and was pronounced dead at the scene at about 8.33pm, the jury heard.
Michelle Nelson, prosecuting, said Mr Hickox sustained significant injuries to his head, face and brain when he was hit by the vehicle.
Mr Hickox was a tall man with long grey hair and was described as “scruffy” and “trampish” by witnesses, wore blue-tinted sunglasses, and had many carrier bags, two tennis racquets and ornamental mice with him. Witnesses described Mr Hickox placing the mice on the table of the pub and speaking to them.
Rostram Notarki, the landlord of the Cardinal Wolsey, was alleged to have chased Mr Hickox from the pub into the road while brandishing the ironing board following a row.
Ms Nelson said: “Footage shows Rostram Notarki holding the ironing board aloft. Mr Hickox reaches the road and Rostram Notarki can be seen striking the victim, propelling him into the road.”
An ironing board was later found in a cupboard on the premises with one of its legs damaged.
Rostram Notarki, a 53-year-old qualified engineer who moved to the UK from Iran in 1982 and lives in Beech Way, Twickenham, denies manslaughter.
His son, Kian Notarki, 19, and a member of staff from the pub, Mehrad Mohmadi of Radcliffe Mews in Hampton, are charged with perverting the course of justice along with the landlord, for allegedly attempting to hide CCTV footage of the incident from police.
Ms Nelson said Mr Hickox, who had lived in the UK for an unspecified amount of time, was odd in both manner and appearance.
He had earlier that day visited Dish cafe in Bridge Road and, when he was denied Jack Daniels whisky, bought beer and cream tea, which he mixed together in a glass before consuming.
Ms Nelson said though Mr Hickox gave the impression he may have been sleeping rough, this was not the full picture of his life.
She said: “He had access to quite large sums of money, some of which may have come from success at gambling. He is known to have won large sums at Newmarket and was said to be very good at calculating the odds.”
Over the course of the day, Mr Hickox purchased six bottles of wine and was seen to be drinking beer and wine out of the bottle, but a toxicology report revealed he had 92mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood, which indicates only a mild level of intoxication.
He had chatted with staff and customers at Dish cafe and appeared “happy and jovial”, before being asked to leave the premises when he smashed a glass, the jury heard.
CCTV footage shown to the jury of Mr Hickox’s first visit to the Cardinal Wolsey at about 6pm appeared to show Kian Notarki swapping Mr Hickox’s bottles of wine before returning to him as he was ejected from the bar.
The investigating CCTV officer, Ray Omelasz, said: “Mr Notarki is taking the bottle of wine and switching it for another one.
“The bottle is a different shape and you can clearly see the label is different.”
Mr Hickox then went to the nearby Mute Swan pub, before returning to the Cardinal Wolsey to confront staff about a credit card he believed they had taken.
He told a group of men in the Mute Swan he may have to “crack some ribs to get it,” the court heard.
Rostram Notarki denies manslaughter but admits his involvement in hiding the CCTV. Kian Notarki and Mr Mohmadi deny perverting the course of justice.
The trial continues.
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