Murder accused pair remaining in custody
THE duo implicated in the murder of a Dunedin man have denied the charges against them and will remain behind bars for now.
The body of Brent Andrew Bacon was found in a rural area north of Waitati on February 18, the day after police and forensic experts converged on a crime scene at a recently abandoned flat in Lock St, St Clair.
John Kenneth Collins (37) is accused of murder and Aleisha Cherie Dawson (30) is charged as an accessory to the crime.
They appeared in the High Court at Dunedin yesterday before Justice Gerald Nation and pleaded not guilty to charges against them.
Collins consented to a remand in custody but his codefendant applied for bail.
Justice Nation declined the application, the arguments around which were suppressed.
An application for electronically monitored bail would likely be forthcoming, the court heard.
A family spokeswoman previously told the Otago Daily Times Mr Bacon was a father, brother, son, cousin, uncle, nephew and workmate.
‘‘He will be dearly, dearly missed,’’ she said.
The accused pair were arrested in Rotorua on February 20.
Collins also faces a charge of unlawfully taking a motor vehicle while Dawson faces an identical allegation and two charges of attempting to use bank cards to obtain pecuniary advantage.
Police were seeking information from the public on the movements of a dark blue 1995 Toyota Emina people mover, driven from Dunedin to Picton early on February 5, and since found in Picton.
Noone else was being sought in relation to Mr Bacon’s death, police confirmed.
Collins and Dawson will be back in court next month for a case review.
A trial was scheduled for April 27 next year.