Jury fails to reach verdict in Norwegian 'hitman' trial

Julia Quenzler

A jury has failed to reach a verdict in the trial of a Norwegian teenager accused of travelling to England to carry out a killing on behalf of an international crime gang backed by Iran.

Johannes Kongsnes Natland, 19, allegedly agreed with the Swedish Foxes gang to shoot an unknown target for 25,000 euros (£21,500) in March last year.

Two days after arriving in the UK, armed police swooped to arrest him at a hotel in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, and seized two guns and 12 live bullets.

Natland admitted possession of the firearms and ammunition but denied conspiracy to murder. Prosecutors said the Crown would seek a retrial and Natland was remanded into custody.

Jurors retired to deliberate on a verdict on Tuesday morning and were given a majority direction by Mr Justice Lavender earlier.

Shortly before 15:00 BST, the senior judge discharged the jury after it failed to reach a verdict following 14 hours and 43 minutes in retirement.

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HM Courts & Tribunals Service