TWO men who robbed and killed a drug courier before spending his money at a brothel have pleaded guilty to manslaughter.

Lee Williams and Christopher Jones had denied murdering illegal immigrant Shkelzen Dauti in Southampton in March.

But yesterday, just two days into the trial, the pair admitted to the lesser charge of manslaughter.

The prosecution accepted the plea, and both men will now be sentenced for the killing and robbery at Winchester Crown Court on Thursday.

Williams will also be sentenced for possession of a bladed article.

The confessions came after the jury were shown CCTV images of the pair entering a brothel in Reading, just hours after the attack on 21-year-old Mr Dauti.

During the 11 minute video, recorded inside the brothel, one of the men reached into his jacket to pull out a wad of cash, said to be Mr Dauti’s.

Both men then each “utilised the brothel’s services”, and left around 30 minutes later.

Unsatisfied with their fill, the pair, who were both seen drinking in the video, returned to the brothel two more times – although neither used its services again.

However, phone records showed that Mr Williams used his mobile phone to ring escort services in the area that same morning.

Tahir Khan, QC, prosecuting, told the court how the men appeared “relaxed” throughout the CCTV recording.

He said: “The footage, we suggest, shows both men to be in high spirits and entirely relaxed, as if they had not a care in the world.

“And this is, we say, just a few hours after they had killed a man.

“This is significant in this case.”

The prosecution told the court how Williams and Jones left Southampton in the early hours of March 11, after stabbing Mr Dauti, an illegal immigrant from Albania.

Mr Dauti, nicknamed ‘Genny’, was told to meet the pair at Gilpin Close, Thornhill, to deliver cocaine.

But when he arrived he was attacked and stabbed in the chest by the pair, who did not have the money to pay for the drugs.

After leaving the area, the pair went to Reading for their brothel visit, before returning to William’s home in Slough.

On their return, Williams, of Flintshire, North Wales, sent a text to his boss.

In the message, the 27-year-old said he would not be coming into work as he intended to return home to Wales to “be a family” with his ex-girlfriend.

The pair were later joined by a friend in Slough, before attempting to drive home to Wales.

However, police stopped the trio on the way and arrested Williams and Jones – also from Wales.

The pair were later charged with Mr Dauti’s murder, for which they pleaded not guilty.

The court heard how they offered “no comment” during police interviews.

A search of Willams’ home in Slough as produced a knife, said to be from the same set as the one used to stab Mr Dauti.

Yesterday, jury members also heard a statement from Mr Dauti’s fiance, Erjola Vlardi, who he had proposed to just a fortnight before his death.

The couple, who met in college, were due to be married in Albania in the summer.

Miss Vlardi admitted that Mr Dauti was an illegal immigrant, who had been in the country for nearly two years under the Italian identity Alessio Bianchi.

Miss Vlardi, who lives in Watford, said that her fiancee had come to England in search of a better life, but was unaware of his drug related work.

The court also heard a statement by Mr Dauti’s third cousin, Fatjon Gola.

He described him as “respectful” and a “family man”.

Mr Goal said Mr Dauti has only been in Southampton for around a month, and had moved to the city to work in construction.

He added that Mr Dauti’s death had come as a shock.

Williams and Jones face a maximum life sentence when they appear before Judge Keith Cutler on Thursday.

Ahead of the sentencing, Hampshire Constabulary's detective chief inspector, Liz Williams, said: “This was an unprovoked, violent and needless attack that Lee Williams and Christopher Jones carried out to satisfy their own greed.

“I would like to recognise the efforts of our uniformed colleagues who responded and helped secure vital evidence, our specialist officers who worked tirelessly to track Williams and Jones before and after the incident, and our partner agencies who worked with us to ensure the community continued to feel safe.

“I extend my sincere condolences to his parents and his fiancée for their loss, I hope this verdict goes some way towards easing their pain.”