Murder victim Edward Worton

by Alex Claridge

A father of baby twins from Canterbury has been beaten to death.

Edward Worton, 31, was just six months into parenthood when he was found with serious head injuries at a house in the Middleton area of Greater Manchester on Friday.

Two men have been arrested and charged with the former Wincheap and Chaucer schoolboy's murder.

Known as Eddie, he had been living in Manchester for several years and worked in recruitment.

Hundreds of messages of condolence have been placed on social networking site Facebook.

His brother Danny, 32, from Canterbury, said: "It just seems so unreal at the moment.

"Eddie was loved by so many people and the word we keep hearing to describe him is 'legend'.

"He touched the lives of so many people and the outpouring of grief for him is incredible."

Edward Worton's partner Michelle Bork gave birth to Poppy and Edward junior six months ago

Eddie and his partner Michelle Bork, 29, had been trying for five years to have children.

Michelle gave birth to Poppy and Edward junior six months ago after prolonged IVF treatment.

Eddie had another brother, Benji, 29, and a sister Katie, 30. She said: "His twins had become his world and he was concentrating his life on them."

Away from his work and home life, Eddie was a keen boxer and kept himself fit and healthy. He also enjoyed foreign holidays and was particularly fond of America.

Police in Manchester have not yet released his body as the initial stages of their investigation continue and so the Worton family have not yet arranged a date or place for the funeral, but say it will be in the Canterbury area.

The scene where Edward Worton was found dead

Danny, Katie, Benji and their mother Claire travelled to Manchester on Saturday where they identified their brother's body.

Benji and Claire stayed in the north this week and Danny and Katie will return tomorrow.

Danny added: "Once the funeral is arranged, the family would like to invite all his friends to come along and celebrate his life.

"I would also like to thank everyone for their kind words and support over the last few days."

Brothers Aaron Ward, 28, and Vincent Ward, 27, from Middleton, in Greater Manchester, are charged with Eddie Worton's murder.

They appeared at Bury Magistrates' Court on Monday, where the case was transferred to Manchester Crown Court where they appeared on Tuesday.

The pair were remanded in custody until April 24 when they will return to the crown court for a plea and case management hearing.