The brother of a man accused of murdering their stepdad says he threatened to kill him too.

Wayne Thornton, 52, is on trial accused of murdering his stepdad John Uttley, 79, in their Paddock home in June.

Richard Thornton told a jury today (Wednesday) that his older brother threatened to kill him six months before that.

The 51-year-old said that the defendant turned on him after a letter about his benefits enraged him.

Here's a re-cap of our courtroom Live Blog.

He said: “[Wayne Thornton] ran into the kitchen and grabbed two kitchen knives of around nine inches long in front of my poorly mum and dad.

“He said that he wanted to kill me, at which point he then stormed out.

“I tried to get him out to get him out of the way of my parents.”

Then he stared directly at his older brother in the dock, who appeared to have his eyes closed.

As heard in court yesterday, the defendant claimed that Mr Uttley sexually abused him when he was seven years old.

His younger brother denied that in court today, saying: “My father never sexually abused Wayne or anyone else.”

Breaking down into tears, he added: “It wasn’t his nature.

A police tent at the incident on Royds Avenue, Paddock.

“He wasn’t that sort of person. He was quite the opposite, he abhorred anything like that.”

Discussing how their stepdad would discipline the two boys growing up, he said: “[Mr Uttley] could be a very strict man and on a couple of occasions it was physical punishment but it wasn’t something that occurred on a daily basis or a weekly basis. It was something that occurred occasionally.

“It would generally be in response to me and Wayne getting in trouble and the stress we were causing both our parents.”

But Leeds Crown Court heard differing reports about the defendant and the victim’s relationship.

Kama Melly QC, prosecuting, read a report which indicated that the family’s previous home in Longwood was deemed unfit to live in due to several rat infestations and damp.

She also read a social worker’s report which said that Mr Thornton’s childhood affected his social and scholastic development.

The defendant, who is paranoid schizophrenic and has a history of drug abuse, has previous convictions including rape, arson, possession of a firearm and burglary.

He pleaded guilty to manslaughter at an earlier hearing but denies murder.

The trial continues.