A photo of a murder victim was taken as he lay fatally injured, a court has heard.
Downpatrick Magistrates Court also heard that detectives investigating the murder of Mark Alan Dorrian found a footwear print on the right side of his forehead.
An officer also revealed that police had a 50 minute audio recording of what happened in the flat before they arrived in the early hours of Boxing Day.
Carl Kerr (36) and Claire Rees (33) spoke only to confirm their identities and that they understood the single charge against them.
Kerr, from Corry Street in Newtownards, and Rees, of no fixed abode, are jointly charged with the murder of Mr Dorrian.
In court on Monday, an officer gave evidence that he believed he could connect both Kerr and Rees to the charge but Kerr’s defence solicitor Joe Mulholland told the court he was objecting to the formal connection.
The officer agreed with the lawyer that initially, Kerr had been arrested for grievous bodily harm and also that apart from the victim, three people had been in the apartment but that one had been freed unconditionally.
It is only those people, suggested Mr Mulholland, “who know what happened” and the officer agreed “that’s correct”.
He told the court that while the investigation is in its early stages, the police had obtained CCTV footage and the audio recording which placed Kerr at the scene and they had also obtained information which “corroborated” the account from a woman who had been freed without charge.
The investigator explained that Mr Dorrian’s flat was part of a housing association so was equipped with an emergency pull cord which had been activated and that in turn had initiated an audio recording.
He conceded that some parts were difficult to hear but others were clear so colleagues were working on a transcript of the recording.
He revealed that officers had conducted an examination of a mobile phone which had uncovered a photograph of the injured Mr Dorrian, “taken at a time when we believe both the accused were on the premises”.
“That photo was taken while they were both there, approximately an hour before the cord was pulled so we believed that the deceased had been lying there for some time in an injured state,” they claimed.
Mr Mulholland suggested that at the time of the incident “police were short staffed” and were not able to give as many officers as they wanted to the investigation but teh court was told a full major investigation team had been deployed.
Mr Mulholland confirmed he was not applying for bail with John Finucane, solicitor for Rees, adopting the same position.
Judge Paul Copeland remanded the pair into custody and adjourned the case to Newtownards where they will appear by videolink on January 22.