Three men appear in court charged with murder of man found dead in Bournemouth alleyway

Three men have appeared in court accused of murdering a man who was found dead in an alleyway.

The trio, two of them brothers, were charged with the murder of Michael "Shaun" Bastable after a pathologist revealed that internal injuries were the cause of his death.

Initially it was thought that the 56-year-old's death was not suspicious after he was found unresponsive along Shelbourne Road, Bournemouth on January 14.

However, the investigation was re-opened days later when it was discovered that Mr Bastable's bank cards had been used since his death.

Damien Johnson, 30, pleaded not guilty to the charge of murder at Winchester Crown Court, with his co-defendants Hayden Johnson, 28, and Dominic MacDonald, 30, not entering pleas.

The trio have been remanded in custody ahead of a trial which is set to take place in July.

The three defendants have also been charged with robbery, relating to Michael's death, and another unrelated robbery on January 19.

A separate robbery charge was also put to Hayden Johnson and Damien Johnson relating to an incident on January 21 and Johnson was also charged with breaching a non-molestation order.

Damien Johnson indicated a plea of not guilty to the breach of a non-molestation order.

In a statement after the defendants were charged, Detective Superintendent Gavin Dudfield, of Dorset Police, said: "Following a meticulous investigation, led by the Force's Major Crime Investigation Team, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has authorised the charges for murder and robbery.

"Mr Bastable's family have been updated of this development and our thoughts remain with them."