Published Tuesday, 31 January 2012
The court was also told that the chief prosecution witness against Newry woman Lindsay White will be her former co-accused Adrian Cunningham.
Cunningham has since been jailed for life for the July 2009 murder of Polish national Marek Mateusz Muszynski.
Lindsay White, from Mary Street in Newry, who denies the murder, later claimed that she had tried to stop Cunningham, and that it was he who later wanted the Chinese carryout.
She claimed she went along with him because she was frightened of him.
However, prosecuting QC Philip Mateer claimed it was Lindsay White who struck the first blow after they had hatched a rough and ready plan to attack Mr Muszynski in the laneway running from the city's swimming pool to Edward Street.
The jury of nine men and three women was told that 40-year-old Mr Muszynski, living rough in a squat with two friends and getting his meals from the local Metropolitan Church, was found in the laneway known locally as "The Line" in the early hours of July 7, 2009 by a passerby.
Mr Mateer said he died from multiple injuries, consistent with him being kicked repeatedly while lying defenceless on the ground.
The lawyer said: "In short, he was kicked to death."
The Crown lawyer also dismissed White's claims as a lie, saying she was as much responsible for the murder as Cunningham and - given the ferocity of the attack and the horrific injuries inflicted - that, at the very least, they had intended to cause him really serious harm.