The 47-year-old defendant appeared in the Dunedin District Court by video link this morning charged as an accessory, which carries a maximum penalty of seven years’ imprisonment.
Defence counsel Andrew Dawson sought continued name suppression for his client but Justice Cameron Mander noted there was no supporting evidence before the court.
He allowed a week for that material to be filed; if it was not, suppression would lapse.
A 43-year-old hairdresser was earlier charged with the murder of a 41-year-old woman and had since appeared in the High Court at Dunedin where she too pleaded not guilty.
Both her and the victim’s name remain suppressed.
The murder charge was laid in October after police found a body in an area of dense bush at the rear of a Glenleith property.
However, according to court documents, the killing was alleged to have taken place two months earlier on August 6.
The charge sheets for the alleged accessory stated she “assisted [the alleged killer] by disposing of evidence in order to enable her to avoid arrest”, which happened at least a week later.
Both women will appear in court again in February.
Mr Dawson said a bail address had been found for his client.
If the Crown had no opposition to the defendant’s release, Justice Mander said, it could be dealt with administratively.
