Three Belfast men went on trial at Belfast Crown Court yesterday accused of the murder of a convicted paedophile in a flat in the east of the city in August 1997.
Mr Desmond Christopher Moonan (53) was beaten and strangled to death in the Newtownards Road flat he shared with one of the defendants, Mr Darren Robert Stewart (28).
Mr Moonan's blood-covered body was found in the flat on the morning of August 14th, 1997. Also in the dock are Mr Martin Chappell (38) and Mr Peter James Davies (28), both from Utility Men's Hostel. The trial, which is expected to last up to three weeks, continues today.