JURORS have heard the dramatic 999 call made after friends discovered the body of Colin Dunford in his own home.

The 81-year-old was found battered and bloodied in the front room of his Middlesbrough home in April this year.

Newcastle Crown Court heard Angelina Dicicco (CORR), the partner of Mr Dunford's drinking friend George Foreman, make a frantic call to the emergency services.

The jurors heard a clearly distressed Miss Dicicco say: “I need the police. A man has been hurt, he has been robbed and murdered, you have to come now.” They then hear her repeatedly saying 'Oh God he's dead’.

The operator was heard getting details of what the friends had found when they opened the door.

Miss Dicicco said: “He's on the floor in the living room, we haven't touched anything, we haven't touched him. He's definitely dead.”

The court heard how Mr Foreman and Andrew Mallett, the bar manager of Samuelsons Working Men’s Club, went to Mr Dunford's house after they became concerned after he had missed two nights running at the club.

Mr Foreman, who had a spare key for Mr Dunford's house, told how he called his partner to get her to bring the key when he got no response from ringing the door bell.

PC Steven Taylor told the jury that when he entered the house he saw congealed blood across the pensioner’s face and checked for a pulse but realised Mr Dunford was dead as his arm was stiff from the onset of rigor mortis.

He said: “His was covered in what appeared to be dried blood, the bottom half of his face was covered by some sort of fabric.”

A 15-year-old, who gave evidence, told how he and murder suspect James Allen had carried out some pointing and brick work in the rear yard of Mr Dunford’s house the summer before he was killed.

The teenager, who cannot be named for legal reasons, said Mr Allen told him Mr Dunford had a barrel or "treasure chest" containing pound coins and told him "don't be touching it".

John Bromley-Davenport QC, defending, accused the boy of lying and making it up, which the witness denied.

As the cross examination became more fractious, the judge, Mr Justice Openshaw was forced to intervene saying: “He is only 15 don’t shout at him.”

Mr Allen, of Lothian Road, Middlesbrough, denies two charges of murder. He is accused of killing Mr Dunford before killing Julie Davison in Whitby three days later.

The 36-year-old denies both charges.

The trial is expected to last for at least three weeks.