Two men in court over murder of Stockton man John Wright

John Wright was discovered fatally injured on Parliament Street just after 1pm on Sunday, December 29.

Jordan Vaughan, 20, of Harlow Crescent, Thornaby , and Kienan Johnson, 21, of Windsor Road, Stockton, have each been charged with the murder of the 41-year-old.

During the brief hearing at Teesside Crown Court no pleas were indicated to the charge and the case was adjourned until a date to be confirmed.

• Heartbroken family of suspected murder victim urge witnesses to come forward​

Judge Stephen Ashurst heard that the trial is expected to  between seven and ten days.

He remanded both defendants in custody.

Floral tributes at the scene of Mr Wright's murder

Earlier this month, Mr Wright's sisters, Jackie and Debbie, urged members of the public to come forward with any information to help the police.

They said: "No one deserves to die like that, absolutely no one. 

"We would urge anyone with information to come forward, we don't really no what has happened to our brother because the police can't say at the minute, but please come forward with anything that could help us."

And Cleveland Police is also continuing to appeal for witnesses to the events of that day.

Senior Investigating Officer, Detective Chief Inspector Chris Barker said: “At the time of this incident, there were lots of people in the street and we believe there are still potential witnesses who haven’t come forward with information.

“If you are one of these people, and believe you may have witnessed something, we would urge you to please come forward and speak with officers as you could assist us with our enquiries.

“All information is vital to this investigation. Anyone with information is asked to contact detectives at Cleveland Police on 101 quoting SE19220059.”

Alternatively people can contact independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111, or online at www.crimestoppers-uk.org