A man has appeared before a crown court judge charged with the murder of a woman who was found unconscious after taking her dog for a walk.
Mother-of-six Anita Rose left her house to take her springer spaniel, Bruce, for a walk at about 5am on July 24.
The 57-year-old was found unconscious with a serious head injury near Rectory Lane in Brantham, Suffolk, at about 6.25am that day, and died four days later.
On Monday, Suffolk Police arrested a man on suspicion of her murder and he was charged on Tuesday.
Roy Barclay appeared in the secure dock before Suffolk Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday, wearing a dark blue jumper.
The 55-year-old spoke only to confirm his name, date of birth and that he is of no fixed address.
He is alleged to have murdered Ms Rose on July 24 of this year.
Barclay was not asked to enter a plea during the two-minute hearing.
He later appeared before Judge Martyn Levett at Ipswich Crown Court in a separate hearing.
The judge set a provisional trial date of May 27 2025.
He remanded Barclay in custody, and fixed a further case management hearing for January 31 when he said the defendant would be asked for his plea.
Suffolk Police said a male cyclist called an ambulance after he found Ms Rose lying unconscious on a track road near the sewage works and railway line off Rectory Lane.
Ms Rose was taken to Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge, having sustained a serious head injury and facial injuries, where she died four days later on July 28.
The dog was not harmed in the incident.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article