Not guilty plea in murder case

A 43-year-old hairdresser has pleaded not guilty to the murder of a Dunedin woman.

The defendant appeared in the High Court at Dunedin yesterday where she was granted continued name suppression for another two weeks.

Counsel John Westgate said he had only received a small portion of the police’s evidential disclosure and expected much more soon.

Any application to continue the suppression order would need to be supported by evidence, Justice Cameron Mander said.

The identity of the victim was also kept secret at the request of Crown prosecutor Craig Power.

No bail application was made and the defendant was remanded in custody by consent until February next year.

The defendant was charged almost immediately after a woman’s body was found at a Glenleith property on October 8.

However, according to charging documents, the murder took place more than two months earlier.

The scene where the victim’s body was found is a secluded area of dense bush and is rough and difficult to access.

A neighbour said the owner of the property was overseas and it had been rented for some time.

 

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