An autopsy has confirmed that the death of a man in Red Deer was a homicide.
Red Deer City RCMP said Monday that George William McDonald, 40, died by strangulation.
Two people are charged with second-degree murder and face separate charges.
Martin Munro, 36, originally from Miramichi, N.B., and Jolyn Ten Hove, 37, of Red Deer, appeared briefly in Red Deer provincial court heard on Monday and were remanded in custody until Feb. 1 after reserving their pleas.
Munro, who appeared with a heavily bandaged right arm, and Ten Hove, are both charged with second-degree murder.
Neither has a lawyer yet but they were represented on Monday by Legal Aid Society of Alberta lawyer Murray Shack.
They were charged after McDonald was found dead in a Red Deer residence early last Thursday.
McDonald, originally of Miramichi, was found in a home on Forest Close after emergency crews were called out at about 2:50 a.m. on Thursday.
Police allege a fight broke out between two males inside the home. The victim and suspects knew each other, according to spokesman Const. Chris Kosack.