A HOMELESS man was kicked about the head and had his throat stamped on during a suspected race-hate murder in Newry, the High Court in Belfast heard yesterday.
Prosecutors said Marek Muszynski (40), from Poland, was attacked after being lured into an alleyway by false claims that a suspicious car was following him.
It was alleged that he was knocked to the ground, beaten repeatedly and robbed of some small change in his pockets before his trousers were pulled down.
The court heard that a teenager accused of killing him then bought drink and a takeaway meal to eat at a flat where he changed his clothing.
Adrian Cunningham ( 19), from Lisgullion Park, Newry, is charged with murdering Mr Muszynski at Upper Edwards Street last July.
Crown counsel Gareth Purvis said: “Police would say this was an extremely violent, unprovoked and also, they believe, racially motivated attack.”
He told the court the victim had been a vulnerable man who depended on a local soup kitchen for food. Mr Muszynski was confronted by two men after leaving an off-licence and taken to an alleyway where the fatal beating was inflicted, the court heard.
Tony Lunny, defending, claimed Mr Cunningham represented the “most unlikely criminal”. He said his client hoped for a career in hairdressing and had undertaken a foundation degree in sociology while in remand.
The accused’s father, a senior civil servant, gave evidence to stress how the family would monitor him if granted bail. Lord Justice Girvan granted bail with conditions to Mr Cunningham.