Couple deny murdering man found naked in shallow grave in Northumberland

A couple went on trial this week charged with murdering a man who was found naked in a shallow grave at Cresswell.
The site where Darren Bonner was found. Picture by Jane ColtmanThe site where Darren Bonner was found. Picture by Jane Coltman
The site where Darren Bonner was found. Picture by Jane Coltman

Newcastle Crown Court heard that Darren Bonner, 24, from Sunderland, was found semi-conscious by a man walking north up the shore road from Lynemouth to Cresswell on July 10 last year. He died 16 days later, having suffered brain damage.

Richard Spottiswood, 34, from Canterbury Way, Jarrow, and his girlfriend Lucy Burn, 29, from Burns Close, South Shields, both deny murder.

The trial, which started yesterday, is expected to take 10 days.