A man has appeared in court charged with the murder of two Chinese graduates.

Xi Zhou and her boyfriend, Zhen Xing Yang, both 25, were found mutilated in their ground-floor flat in Croydon Road, Newcastle, in August.

Guang Hui Cao, 30, of Castle Place, Morpeth, Northumberland, was at Newcastle Crown Court for a ten-minute hearing. He spoke through an interpreter to confirm his name and age.

Northumbria Police made an application, which was granted by the magistrate, to detain £4,565 which was seized at his home.

The money can be held by the force for three months to allow investigations to be carried out.

Guang was remanded in custody to appear before Newcastle Crown Court on November 10 for a preliminary hearing. No pleas were entered, and no application for bail was made.

The Chinese couple graduated from Newcastle University, where they met, and Miss Xi worked as a waitress in a city centre noodle bar.

After his bloody death, it came to light that Mr Zhen may have been involved in an international football betting scam.

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