Two suspected members of the Greek neo-Nazi party Golden Dawn have gone on trial accused of stabbing a 27-year-old Pakistani man to death.

Dionyssis Liakopoulos, 25, and Christos Steriopoulos, 29, risk a life sentence if found guilty of the drive-by killing of Shehzad Luqman in Athens last January.

They were arrested a few hours after the murder when a taxi driver who witnessed the attack reported their motorbike numberplate to police.

According to the driver, the pair drove up behind the victim and assaulted him as he cycled near the Athens Acropolis.

A search of Liakopoulos’ home uncovered leaflets from the neo-Nazi party Golden Dawn, according a to a police source.

Both men deny being members of the party.

The case is coming to trial three months after the fatal stabbing of a leftist rapper by a Golden Dawn supporter, which paved the way for a crackdown on the neo-Nazi group with six of its members charged with belonging to a criminal group.

Formerly on the fringe of Greek politics, Golden Dawn has seen its popularity soar as it taps into widespread anger over immigration and austerity reforms in debt-ridden Greece.