LIFE FOR MAN AS HE ADMITS KILLING PAL

29-yr-old pleads guilty to house murder

A MAN pleaded guilty yesterday to murdering his friend following an incident at a house.

Kenneth Cowan, from Titania Street in the Cregagh area of East Belfast, was due to go on trial next month.

At an arraignment hearing in September before the city’s Crown Court, the

29-year-old had denied killing

Brian Anthony

Burke at a house in the area.

But at the same court yesterday a defence barrister asked Belfast

Recorder Judge

David Mcfarland for Cowan to be re-arrainged on the single charge he faced.

When the charge of murder was put to Cowan, the clerk of the court asked if he was pleading guilty or not guilty. The accused, flanked by prison officers in the dock, replied: “Guilty.”

In light of his plea, Judge Mcfarland said he was imposing an immediate sentence of life imprisonment.

He added a tariff hearing would be held on February 1 to determine how long Cowan will spend in prison before he is eligble to apply for parole.

Mr Burke, 29, was treated for stab wounds at the scene on April 8.

At the previous arraignment hearing, Cowan’s defence counsel Gavan Duffy told the court: “The position is the defendant in this case accepts full responsibility for causing the death of the deceased Mr Burke.’’

Cowan was remanded in custody to Maghaberry Prison.

SCENE Police during probe in East Belfast VICTIM Brian Burke