PARENTS of a murder accused handed in a bag of blood-stained evidence missed by a police search team.

Detective Sergeant Peter Cash told Liverpool Crown Court how relatives of defendant Rachael Horton, 19, were collecting their daughter's belongings when they came across the bag at the crime scene in Hawthorne Road, Frodsham.

Horton used to stay overnight at the address where her then fiance and co-accused Scott Davidson, 23, lived - although she was residing with her parents in Little Sutton at the time of the incident.

Both defendants deny murdering 49-year-old Martin Ithell, from Boughton, Chester, at the house on March 11, where he was allegedly shot and stabbed.

Prosecutor Michael Chambers QC said the blood-stained items were found on April 9 in a Morrisons carrier bag at the back of a kitchen cupboard containing lots of similar plastic bags.

The items included personal effects belonging to Mr Ithell, allegedly stripped from his body, such as an imitation Rolex watch, his ID badge, plus his mobile phone and bluetooth earpiece, both of which were broken.

There were also six pairs of blue plastic gloves which appeared to be inside out and a brown cloth.

DS Cash, who has just retired, said when he arrived at the scene Horton's parents were in the kitchen and Davidson's parents, plus a family friend, were upstairs gathering their children's belongings.

He described the items recovered as "still wet" from the blood as though it was fresh, even though it wasn't.

Addressing the former police officer, defence barrister Richard Pratt QC, for Davidson, said: "This goes without saying, I suppose, the failure to pick this up, during what was supposed to be an intensive search, it's bad isn't it?"

"Mistakes happen, sir," replied the retired detective.

The trial continues.