Murder trial date over Southland man Dale Watene's death deferred until next June

Dale Watene. Photo / Supplied

A trial date for the pair facing charges after the death of Southland man Dale Watene has been rescheduled to next year.

After a hearing in the High Court at Invercargill, Justice Cameron Mander confirmed the trial would start on June 7, 2022.

It was expected to take about three weeks.

Sandy Maree Graham is charged with murder, and a 23-year-old man, who has interim name suppression, was charged with being an accessory to murder.

Both pleaded not guilty last year.

The trial was scheduled originally for August, but Graham's defence lawyer asked for a change.

Police found the body of Watene, 40, in the Longwood forestry block in May last year, about a month after he went missing.