A man accused of murdering a beloved English teacher and dumping her body in a wheelie bin has appeared in court, but how the two knew each other remains a mystery.
Stephen Fleming, 45, from Coolaroo appeared in Melbourne District Court on Wednesday charged with the murder of Annette Brennan, 67.
Ms Brennan was found dead last week at a rubbish dump in Epping, about 8km from her home in Coolaroo, in Melbourne’s north-west.
Dressed in green and wearing a bald mullet on his head, the alleged killer sat quietly in the dock behind protective glass during the brief hearing.
The court ruled that detectives in Victoria would need 20 weeks to prepare their evidence against Fleming.
A prosecutor told Magistrate Louise Wildberger that police had to analyse and reconstruct multiple crime scenes and collect forensic evidence from computers and other technology related to the alleged crime.
Fleming’s attorney told the court her client had no custody management issues that needed to be resolved while he awaited his next court hearing in January next year.
It is reported that no one from Ms Brennan’s family or the suspect attended the hearing.
Annette Brennan, 67, was found dead last week at a rubbish dump in Epping, about 5 miles from her home in Coolaroo.
Steven Fleming appeared in court on Wednesday
Detectives had Fleming in Glenroy, in Melbourne‘s northwest, around 11:15 a.m. on Tuesday.
They believe Ms Brennan’s remains were placed in a bin collected from her Hilgay Street home last Tuesday by a garbage truck.
Workers at a landfill in nearby Epping found her body last Wednesday while moving green waste and alerted police.
A police spokesman said Ms Brennan knew her alleged killer.
Although police would not reveal how the two knew each other, they did tell reporters that she is not Fleming’s mother.
One of Brennan’s former students, Simona Croce, told 9News that the teacher was a “beautiful, loving and kind woman.”
“She was amazing, I’m really shocked,” she added, calling her a “second mother.”
“Nobody deserves to be treated like this, absolutely no one,” she said.
A major police investigation continues in the Coolaroo area to collect CCTV footage.
Police visited the Coolaroo home on Monday, where an officer was seen locking the house
Detectives would also like to get in touch with people who saw suspicious activities in the area around that time.
The arrest is the result of swift detective work that saw police trace the route of the woman’s body from the landfill to her home in Coolaroo.
On Saturday, the police were caught collecting pruning waste from plants and shrubs on nearby plots. Presumably, these types of pruning waste match the types of pruning waste found at the landfill.
Police also searched another brick house about 100 yards away, where they deployed a locksmith to gain entry the building around 1:00 p.m.
Detectives reportedly wanted to review the home’s surveillance camera footage, which could be crucial to the ongoing investigation.
There is little CCTV in the area, which is largely occupied by government, so police are appealing to the public to provide any footage they may have.
The police would particularly like to hear from anyone who may have CCTV or dashcam footage taken between Sunday 23 June and Tuesday 2 July.
Police at Coolaroo home on Saturday
Police were able to match leaf cuttings found at the landfill to those found near the woman’s home
On Monday, a detective was found alone entering the house through the front door.
About 10 minutes later, he was seen closing an open window at the front of the house before leaving.
Apart from teams of media representatives, no one was seen visiting the premises on Monday.
There was also no one present to lay flowers, which is customary in similar tragedies.
A neighbour told Daily Mail Australia the community was still in shock after the suspected murder.
“We’ve never seen anything like this here. It’s just horrible,” the man said.
Other nNeighbors claimed that the woman who lived in the house was quiet but friendly.
Although she was not driving herself, neighbors had seen a car in the driveway being used by a man.
A neighbor reported seeing a man taking out trash in the days leading up to the discovery.
The body of Chaithanya ‘Swetha’ Madhagani was found in a bin in March
The scene outside the Coolaroo home on Monday was very different to the community’s response to the death of Chaithanya ‘Swetha’ Madhagani.
Ms Madhagani’s body was also found in a wheelie bin on Mount Pollock Road in Buckley, west of Geelong, on March 8.
Her death caused an outpouring of emotion in the community, with friends gathering to pay their respects in Point Cook, where she lived.
Ms Brennan is believed to be the 48th woman to be murdered in Australia this year.
Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or log on to www.crimestoppersvic.com.au