TWO BROTHERS have denied their roles in the alleged murder of a talented footballer and the attempted murder of two others.

Iftekhar Khondaker, 34, is accused of killing Suel Delgado on Brighton seafront in December in a suspected hit and run.

Police were called to Marine Parade early on Sunday, December 1 after the incident.

Khondaker is also alleged to have attempted to murder Azaan Khan and Raja Zakir Khan.

At Lewes Crown Court he was represented by barrister Laurie-Anne Power, and when asked to enter a plea to the three charges, he replied: “Not guilty.”

Meanwhile his younger brother Irfan Khondaker, 26, is accused of assisting an offender, and was represented by Garry Green.

Both men appeared in a video hearing at Lewes Crown Court before Judge Christine Laing QC.

They spoke to confirm their names and that they could see and hear proceedings.

Iftekhar wore a red jumper, while Irfan wore a grey jumper during the hearing.

The Judge said a provisional date for a trial on August 3, but said: “I have to stress that it is a provisional date at present.

“We have no idea as to when we are going to be able to restart jury trials.

“Obviously when we do we will have a large number of trials that need to be refixed that should be happening now and aren’t.”

She asked the barristers, including Kate Lumsdon for the prosecution, to be ready to start in August.

Addressing the defendants, she said: “You have both pleaded not guilty, and won’t be surprised to hear that I cannot guarantee that the trial will take place on that date.

“At present no courts are able to hear jury trials and we have a backlog of cases.”

Both men, formerly of Caithness Road, Mitcham, London, deny the charges.