OXFORD: A jury has cleared a man of a knife-point robbery after he said he could have been mistaken for his cousin.

Colum Flaherty, of Brome Place, Barton, Oxford, was found not guilty yesterday of robbery and possessing a bladed article in a public place. A jury at Oxford Crown Court cleared the 29-year-old of carrying out the robbery on April 17 last year.

Jenny Burgess, prosecuting, said Mr Flaherty had stolen £240 from takeaway delivery man Waleed Rahmati after pointing a knife at him in Brome Place.

Mr Flaherty said he could have been mistaken for his cousin, also called Colum Flaherty. Mr Rahmati was alleged to have told a friend the man who robbed him had an Irish accent whereas the defendant had an English accent.