A Ballina man has pleaded not guilty to murdering his partner, more than 21 months after her battered body was found in a laneway on the New South Wales north coast.
In the NSW Supreme Court on Friday, Robert Karl Huber, 68, pleaded not guilty to murdering Lindy Lucena at Ballina in January last year.
He also pleaded not guilty to unlawfully killing the 64-year-old woman, who was also known as ‘Kimmy’, or assaulting her causing actual bodily harm in the month before her death.
Lindy Lucena was found dead in a laneway at Ballina in northern NSW in January, 2023 (Supplied)
Wearing prison greens, Mr Huber entered his pleas to the three charges via video link from Clarence Correctional Centre.
Crown prosecutors allege he killed Ms Lucena on January 3 last year, before attending Ballina Police Station at about 12:30am to speak to police.
They allege he then led officers to a laneway next to the Salvation Army where her body was found, suffering from significant head trauma.
The court heard Mr Huber will now face a judge-alone trial after Crown prosecutors consented to an application by his lawyer Nathan Steel.
Mr Huber has been in custody since his arrest and will face a two-week trial later this year.
