Man charged with murder after body found in Birmingham canal to enter pleas next month
A man charged with the murder of a 48-year-old whose body was found in a canal in Birmingham more than five years ago is expected to enter pleas next month.
Cain Watson, 32, was not produced for his first appearance at Birmingham Crown Court on Friday after he was arrested at an address in the city and charged this week in connection with the death of Darren Round.
Mr Round’s body was discovered on the morning of February 15 2020, near Masshouse Lane in Kings Norton, in Birmingham, West Midlands Police said.
The court hearing, in front of Judge Simon Drew KC, went ahead in Watson’s absence after his counsel said there would be no application for bail on behalf of the defendant, and a date for a plea and trial preparation hearing was set for January 15.
The judge heard that a trial, which was provisionally set for June, could last more than three weeks because of the amount of CCTV and medical evidence to be heard in the case.
