Foster mother took killer into her home thinking he was a teenage asylum seeker trends now

Lawangeen Abdulrahimzai was sentenced to a 20-year prison sentence in his absence following a trial over the killing in Serbia, a preliminary hearing for the UK court case heard.

Prosecutor Nic Lobbenberg KC said: 'Between July 31 and August 1 in 2018, during the evening in Dobrinci - near the motorway - he murdered two people also from Afghanistan.

'The name he was using was Huan Yasin.'

Mr Lobbenberg KC said Afghans were staying in a shed in the area when an argument broke out over trafficking.

'The defendant arrived and an argument broke about the business of transporting migrants.

'He was armed with an automatic assault rifle, two others had pistols… one of the group said 'who is the smuggler?' and then aimed their weapons at the victims

'He shot 18 rounds of a 7.62 calibre Kalashnikov.

'It's a military weapon with great firepower and rapid rate of fire.

'The range of the shooting was said to be relatively short, three to 10 metres.'

Mr Lobbenberg KC said the killer did not move position and fired six rounds into each victim, with some bullets hitting their heads.

'An enormous number found their target', he said.

Abdulrahimzai, who fled Serbia, was later identified by a taxi driver who drove him away from the scene, it was heard.

The taxi driver said he was 'sweating' and 'showing signs of anxiety', with the court also hearing he got the weapon from 'gypsies'.

In November 2020 he was convicted of murder in his absence by a Serbian court, having been wanted in the country since the attacks.

He was understood to be 15 at the time of the killings, it was heard.