Two boys charged over the death of a West Auckland shopkeeper made a brief appearance in the High Court at Auckland today.
A 13-year-old boy, whose name is suppressed, is charged with the murder of 57-year-old Arun Kumar at the Railside Dairy in Henderson in June.
His co-accused, a 12-year-old boy whose name is also suppressed, was initially charged only with assaulting the father of two with intent to rob, but police later added a count of manslaughter.
They were both present in the High Court today for a callover hearing before Justice Timothy Brewer.
A seven-week trial was originally set down to begin on November 24 but Justice Brewer expressed some concern over its length.
Another callover hearing has been set down for October ahead of what is now expected to be a three-week trial in November.
Several members of the boys' families were present in the public gallery today.
Both boys are in the custody of Child Youth and Family.