Man denies murdering English teacher and dumping body in bin

A Melbourne man accused of murdering an English teacher and dumping her body in a wheelie bin has pleaded not guilty and will stand trial.

Stephen Fleming, 47, was charged on July 10 last year with the murder of Annette Brennan after the 67-year-old’s body was found in green waste at a recycling facility in Epping, in Melbourne’s north.

Fleming faced Melbourne Magistrates’ Court via video link on Wednesday and requested the case be fast-tracked to the Supreme Court.

When asked by magistrate Michelle Mykytowycz if he understood that by doing so, he was waiving his right to a committal hearing – where the evidence would be examined to determine if the matter should proceed to trial – he nodded.

She then asked him to formally plead and Fleming, who was wearing a green prison shirt, responded: “Not guilty, your honour.”

Mykytowycz said Fleming’s defence team had two weeks to give written notice to the court and the director of public prosecutions about any potential evidence of an alibi.

Investigators say Brennan’s remains were inside a bin that was picked up outside her home in Hilgay Street, Coolaroo, and taken to an Epping waste facility about eight kilometres away.

Police said at the time that staff at the Repurpose It facility made the grim discovery on July 3 last year while moving green waste.

Fleming, who remained expressionless for much of Wednesday’s hearing, was arrested almost a week after Brennan’s body was found.

Brennan, who taught English and was a tutor for overseas arrivals to Australia, had moved to the street just two months earlier and was renting a single-storey brick home. News of her death shocked and devastated former students and members of her church, who remembered her as a loved teacher who had become a “second mum” to many people she taught.

“She was beautiful, loving and a kind woman,” former student Simona Croce said at the time. “No one deserves to be treated this way, no one.”

Mykytowycz addressed Brennan’s loved ones, who attended the court, at the end of the hearing.

“I just want to acknowledge their presence, and thank them for coming to court today,” she said.

Police have alleged that Brennan and Fleming were known to each other, but it is not yet clear what relationship the pair had.

Fleming is to appear in the Supreme Court on January 28.

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