'Double murder' defendant refuses to participate in hearing
The man accused of stabbing his mother and sister to death in their £2.5 million home has refused to attend his first Crown Court hearing.
Joshua Cohen, 27, allegedly murdered Louise, 66, and Hannah Cohen, 33, at the family's house in Golders Green, north London.
The women were pronounced dead at the scene after emergency services arrived at around 8.50pm on Friday August 11.
Cohen, of Barnet, north London, was tracked down in nearby Golders Hill Park at around 2pm on Saturday after a tip-off from a member of the public.
He was due to appear via video link from custody before Judge Nicholas Hilliard at the Old Bailey for a hearing to set a timetable for his case.
But the defendant declined to appear in court, although he was represented by senior barrister John Femi-Ola QC.
During the brief hearing, no bail application was made and Judge Hilliard set a provisional trial for February 5 next year with a plea hearing on November 1.
