London - The two men accused of plotting to murder Joss Stone were carrying a sword, a lock knife, a hammer and notes of their intentions.
Junior Bradshaw, 32, and 35-year-old Kevin Liverpool both appeared in Exeter Crown Court, South West England, on Monday after being arrested in June 2011 after they were seen acting suspiciously near the singer's home in nearby Cullompton.
The two men set off from their hometown of Manchester Manchester and prosecutors said “eagle-eyed” residents spotted them driving suspiciously in the area of Joss' property.
The police were called and the men were subsequently stopped and arrested.
Notes and text messages recovered from them made their intentions to rob and kill the singer “perfectly clear”, the jury of 10 men and two women was told. Joss was in the house at the time.
The pair deny conspiracy to murder, rob and cause grievous bodily harm.
The trial is expected to last up to three weeks and Joss is not expected to be present in court during the trial.
After the incident, Joss said she was “baffled” by it and didn't understand why she was targeted.
She said: “I'm fine, if slightly baffled by it. I can't stress about what didn't happen, that would seem silly. Every job has positives and negatives and I guess this was one of the negatives that comes with mine. I don't expect life to be perfect. I just try to make it as fun as possible.” - Bang Showbiz