Washington man appears in court charged with murder of grandfather from Jarrow

Christopher Graham, 30, of Romney Avenue in Washington is accused of the murder of Simon Bowman.

The 54-year-old's body was found at his home in High Street, Jarrow, last Tuesday.

Graham has appeared at Newcastle Crown Court, via video link to HMP Durham and spoke only to confirm his name.

He was not asked to enter a plea to the murder charge and no application was made for bail.

Judge Paul Sloan QC said a further hearing will be held on June 14.

The judge told Graham: "Pending that date, you will be remanded in custody."

Graham was initially due to appear before Teesside Crown Court yesterday, but the case was transferred to Newcastle.

Mr Bowman, 54, was found dead by emergency services at his home address in High Street, Jarrow, just after midday on Tuesday, May 14.

The grandfather had not been seen since the previous Sunday.

Police confirmed that evening that they were treating his death as suspicious.

Friends of Mr Bowman paidtribute to the“devoted” grandfather. Friends Mick and Kelly Collingwood said: “We are very saddened to hear the news that our dear friend Simon Bowman has passed away.

“He was a devoted father, grandfather and best friend, a man who made mistakes in the past, however, he battled back to regain a place in society.

“To us he was a loving, caring man with a big heart. He will be a great loss to us all.”

Detective Chief Inspector John Bent is the senior investigating officer and continues to appeal for anyone with information to contact police.

He said: “We would ask the public to also a void speculating about the incident on social media as this is an ongoing murder investigation.”

People can call police on 101 quoting log 44114/05/19 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800555 111.