A CAR salesman was lured to his death during a bogus meeting at a popular beauty spot.

David Rice, known as Noddy, was waiting for associate Steven Bevens when a gunman shot him up to nine times with a semi-automatic handgun.

Newcastle Crown Court was told that Mr Bevens, 39, had set up the rendezvous at the Marsden Grotto car park, in South Shields, South Tyneside, on May 24, last year, to lure the 42-year-old to his death.

Prosecutors said Mr Bevens, who was living in a flat in Wheatsheaf Court, Sunderland, drove gunman Allan Foster to the scene of the shooting, then drove him away once he was certain Mr Rice was dead.

The court heard how Mr Rice and Mr Bevens both worked for Foster, a notorious drug dealer with a criminal record and a history of underworld dealings.

Toby Hedworth QC, prosecuting, told the court: "On the seafront at South Shields, there is a car park which overlooks Marsden Bay.

"People park there to walk on the cliffs or in the nearby beaches. Some people no doubt park there simply to look out at the sea. But others use that car park for less innocent purposes; they use it to hold meetings in relation to their criminal activities."

He said one such meeting was arranged for 4pm on Wednesday, May 24, last year.

"The meeting was to be between two local men, David Rice and Steven Bevens," Mr Hedworth said.

"Mr Rice believed the meeting was in relation to the drug business in which they were both involved, and to an extent he was correct.

"But, say the Crown, Steven Bevens knew precisely the purpose of the meeting which he had set up.

"The purpose was the execution of David Rice."

The court heard that Mr Rice was talking on the telephone to a solicitor at the time.

Mr Hedworth said: "A black Ford Mondeo parked up next to him on his offside. Its passenger door was, therefore, next to his driver's door.

"There were two front-seat occupants of the Mondeo and both of them were wearing balaclavas.

"The passenger in the Mondeo raised a semi-automatic handgun fitted with a silencer and shot Mr Rice a number of times.

"Mr Rice tried to escape. Despite having been shot, he scrambled across the passenger side of his own car and opened the door.

"He was already badly injured but the passenger in the Mondeo, the gunman, got out.

"He walked around the back of the Peugeot and shot him again and then, at point-blank range, delivered the coup de grace, shooting Mr Rice through the head to make sure he was dead.

"This is why we say this was nothing less than an execution."

The court head how the Mondeo was driven from the scene to nearby Lizard Lane, where it was abandoned and set on fire.

The court was told that the pair then transferred to a waiting orange van and fled.

Mr Bevens, who prosecutors say was the driver of the Mondeo but fired no shots, denies murder and is being tried by a jury.

Foster, who prosecutors say was the gunman, has fled the country and is being hunted by the police.

Mr Bevens recently confessed he had been at the scene of the shooting and was the driver of the Mondeo.

He insists he was not aware that Mr Foster had a weapon and knew nothing about the planned assassination.

The trial continues.