The man charged with the murder of Richard Leman has pleaded not guilty.
Leman was found dead in Rangiora in April.
His accused killer, a 46-year-old man, appeared in the Christchurch High Court by audio-visual link on Friday and entered a not guilty plea through his lawyer Ethan Huda.
The man's name remains secret until a suppression hearing in August.
A trial has been set down for four weeks in October next year.
Leman was missing for almost a week when police officers found his body in the boot of his car, parked in the garage of an abandoned property in the Canterbury town of Rangiora.
He was last seen at Rangiora's Lilybrook Shops on the night of April 11. His family were posting across social media to try and locate him before his body was found at a Tyler St property on April 17.
Last week, a 38-year-old woman was also arrested and charged in relation to Leman's death.
