A MURDER victim was killed as he rebuilt his life following a six-month stay in Pakistan where he spent time recovering from mental illness.

Pavaiz Iqbal had started to take on more work in his job as a builder, Manchester Crown Court heard.

As his business flourished, Mr Iqbal took on workers from Eastern Europe to help cope with demand.

Two of those men now stand accused of killing him with a pan and mallet at his home in Birkdale Gardens, Deane, on December 18, 2006.

Vladimir Brandejs, aged 27, from Prague has pleaded guilty to his murder.

Jiri Motl, aged 33, also from Prague, denies murdering Mr Iqbal in a bid to rob him in a joint plot with Brandejs.

The two are accused of beating Mr Iqbal to death as they robbed him of £600 and his mobile phone.

Yesterday, a jury heard a statement from Mr Iqbal's wife, Izmat, who said she met her husband in his native Pakistan when she was 15 and he was 19.

The couple moved to England and married in 1994, going on to have three children, said Mr Neil Slewitt QC, prosecuting.

But due to the pressures of trying to find a good job and adjusting to English life, Mr Iqbal became depressed and started to drink and gamble, the court heard.

He started to work for himself as a builder, but quickly became paranoid and told his wife that people were "after him" and trying to kill him.

In 2004, he was sectioned under the Mental Health Act.

Mrs Iqbal said: "It was clear he was depressed, but nobody was aware of how seriously ill he was until March, 2005. He tried to slash himself with a knife."

The jury heard that Mr Iqbal's family also found him trying to stab himself in the throat and that his young son had taken a knife from him.

He spent the next two months in a psychiatric ward and was diagnosed with psychotic depression.

Mr Iqbal then spent six months in Pakistan with his family, before returning to England in better spirits, the court heard.

Mrs Iqbal said her husband's health had improved and he began working again.

As his workload increased, he started to employ Eastern European workers.

Prosecutors say Brandejs and Motl had been working for Mr Iqbal and hatched the plot to rob him so they could steal enough cash to go back home in time for Christmas.

The case continues