A man and woman have been remanded in custody after appearing in court in Belfast charged with the murder of Kevin Davidson.
The body of the 34-year-old was discovered at the rear yard of a terraced property in the Donegall Avenue area of south Belfast on Saturday, 20 July.
Mr Davidson had been reported missing earlier this month.
Colm McClenaghan, who is 32, and 35-year-old Jade Harrison, Mr Davidson's ex-partner, are accused of his murder between 9 and 20 July.
Belfast Magistrates Court heard that Kevin Davidson’s mother reported him missing on the 15 July after not hearing from him since 8 July. Police attended the property on Donegall Avenue on three occasions between 15 and 20 July.
The court heard that Mr Davidson had been squatting there for a number of weeks with the two accused, Colm McClenaghan and Jade Harrison.
The accused told police that they did not know of Mr Davidson’s whereabouts.
Both defendants deny involvement in Mr Davidson’s death, insisting that they believed he had left the property after walking in on them having sex.
The court heard that officers forced entry to the rear yard of the property on 20 July and discovered Kevin Davidson’s body lying on his back, concealed under a sleeping bag with black bags over it with weights used to keep them in place.
The results of a preliminary postmortem indicated a ligature tied around his neck tightly causing fractures to small bones.
It was suggested that air fresheners recovered from the scene may have been used to cover any smells.
Police noted a strong smell of decay when discovering the body outside.
Police believe that the murder happened in the back yard.
Jade Harrison’s lawyer claimed that her client did not know that the body was there, or that Mr Davidson was dead.
A lawyer for Colm McClenaghan said that his client had never been in the back yard.
The court heard that Kevin Davidson was a prolific drug dealer.
He had been in hospital, the day before he was last seen, with a drugs overdose.
The court also heard that Mr Davidson had been involved in a suspected suicide attempt in the days previous.
The property on Donegall Avenue was described as a venue for both drug-taking and dealing.
Referring to statements from witnesses, a detective said that Mr Davidson had claimed before his death that Jade Harrison had stolen a phone and £300 (€356) from him.
In the last telephone calls to his mother, he had allegedly accused Ms Harrison of cheating on him and had stated: "They are going to beat me up".
Police also contended that McClenaghan mockingly responded to a threat of violence from the deceased by telling him: "We will see who’s jaw gets broken".
A prosecution lawyer said that 130 items had been seized from the property, and, although there is no forensic evidence at present to connect the two accused to the charges, a detailed forensic strategy would be initiated today.
A lawyer for Colm McClenaghan said that the charge in this case was extremely premature and that police were "clutching at straws".
A lawyer for Jade Harris said that there was "not one shred of evidence" against her client.
District Judge Anne Marshall ruled that there was sufficient evidence against both accused.
She remanded Colm McClenaghan and Jade Harrison into custody to appear again next month.
