The 23-year-old man charged with killing holidaying Victorian surfer Sean McKinnon has pleaded not guilty to murder in New Zealand's High Court in Hamilton on Tuesday.
A trial will take place in November 2020 after the accused, who has been granted name suppression, finally proved fit to enter a plea.
robbery causing grievous bodily harm and driving while disqualified.
Previous hearings had been postponed owing to mental health concerns.
The accused entered his plea through counsel Sheila Cameron, who also successfully applied for an extension of his name suppression due to his fragile mental health.
Australian man Sean McKinnon. Source: Facebook
Cameron told the court her client's recovery from psychosis was only recent and he still needed monitoring, according to a report from news outlet Stuff, which also said members of McKinnon's family were in court for the appearance.
McKinnon, a 33-year-old from the western Victorian surf town of Narrinda, was
He was sleeping in his campervan alongside his fiancee, Canadian midwife Bianca Buckley, when he was shot several times.
Buckley fled through the bush on the outskirts of the North Island town of Raglan, seeking refuge in a farmhouse where she alerted authorities to her partner's death.
The 23-year-old man charged with killing Victorian surfer Sean McKinnon has pleaded not guilty to murder. Source: Facebook
The alleged murderer was apprehended on the outskirts of Hamilton later that day, having driven the campervan for some time before abandoning it.
He has been remanded since then and is due to appear in court in March for a callover hearing when the suppression order will be reviewed once more.
The High Court has set aside three weeks for the trial, due to begin 16 November.
With wires...
