SIMON Hall, the man accused of murdering Joan Albert said he thought the pensioner was a pain, a court heard today.Hall, who denies murder, said in a police interview read out in Norwich Crown Court today that Mrs Albert was a bit of a pain at times because she would constantly ring his mother Lynn Hall, who ran errands for the 79-year-old.

SIMON Hall, the man accused of murdering Joan Albert said he thought the pensioner was a pain, a court heard today.

Hall, who denies murder, said in a police interview read out in Norwich Crown Court today that Mrs Albert was a bit of a pain at times because she would constantly ring his mother Lynn Hall, who ran errands for the 79-year-old.

The jury were told today that Hall, 25, of Hill House Road, Ipswich, had drunk nine pints, a couple of shots and two vodka-based bottled drinks on the night of December 15, 2001 and into the morning of December 16 before Mrs Albert's body was found in her Boydlands home in Capel St Mary.

It is alleged that Hall broke in to burgle the house, then panicked and stabbed the frail pensioner to death with a carving knife.

On December 15, 2001, Hall had been out on his night off from work drinking with friends and at one point they went into Liquid Nightclub.

Hall claims that he drove a friend home and dropped him off at 6am on December 16, and left to go to his parent's home at 6.15am.

He then said he arrived home at 6.28am where his mother spoke to him briefly before going upstairs to bed.

When he went to drop off his friend Jamie Barker, his Audi, which had a loud exhaust, woke Mr Barker's mother up. She said that her son returned home at 5.30am because she looked at her watch.

The police officer asked in the interview if Hall could say where he was for 58 minutes. Hall said he was in his car from 6am.

Black flock fibres were found at the crime scene on Mrs Albert's body, the kitchen window, which was broken and a concrete post. Forensic experts said the fibres were indistinguishable from those found in Hall's car, on his settee at Hill House Road, and bedroom where he lived with his parents at Snowcroft.

Hall said he could not explain why those fibres were found there, but suggested that they may have been from his mother who carried out errands for Mrs Albert including walking her dog and doing her shopping.

He said she had been in Mrs Albert's house and so could have transferred the fibres to his bedroom and his other property.

The trial continues.