An Oamaru tax driver has been charged with kidnapping and murdering a local woman on Saturday.
Trevor Neil Smith appeared briefly in Oamaru District Court yesterday, after being arrested on Monday night and charged with the murder of 31-year-old Karen Cherie Bellamy.
Smith first appeared in court on Tuesday and was granted
interim suppression of his name and occupation.
No pleas were entered to the two charges when Smith reappeared yesterday. He was remanded in custody, to appear again on February 26.
Judge John Macdonald ordered a psychiatric report be prepared and declined to extend the suppression order.
Miss Bellamy's body was found beside Seven Mile Rd, north of Oamaru, at 6.40am on Saturday. A post mortem showed she had suffered a violent assault, which led to her death.
She was last seen outside a diner in Thames St about 3.45am on Saturday, while walking home from The Globe nightclub.
Smith has been a taxi driver in Oamaru for many years, working first with Oamaru Taxis before switching recently to Whitestone Taxis.
Meanwhile, Senior Sergeant Wayne Stringer, of Oamaru police, said one of the main reasons for lifting name suppression was because the community had the right to know who had been arrested for a crime. It also stopped speculation, rumour and misdirected anger.
"In this particular case, the occupation of the accused has nothing to do with the commission of the crime. Both taxi companies in Oamaru are professional and are very supportive of the police and the maintenance of law and order," Mr Stringer said.
- NZPA
