Gerard Lagan charged with 2007 double murder in Belfast
- Published
A man has appeared in court charged with double murder exactly 14 years to the day that the bodies of two men were found in Belfast.
Edward Burns and Joseph Jones were discovered dead hours apart on 12 March 2007.
On Friday, 36-year-old Gerard Lagan, from Raheen Close in Tallaght in Dublin, denied the murder charges against him.
He appeared at Belfast Crown Court by videolink from Maghaberry Prison.
He was charged with murdering Mr Burns and Mr Jones and replied "not guilty" to each of the charges.
The body of 36-year old Mr Burns, who was shot in the head, was found at Bog Meadows in west Belfast.
The battered body of Joseph Jones, 38, was discovered in an alleyway in Ardoyne in north Belfast.
The judge expressed the hope that the trial, which is due to last between four to six weeks, would take place in the autumn.
He remanded Mr Lagan back into custody and said the case would be reviewed on 16 April.