Murder trial into missing Bathurst man Andrew Russell set to start in Sydney
A trial begins today into the alleged murder of a Bathurst man six years.
Twenty three-year-old Andrew Russell was last seen alive in the Central West city of New South Wales in June 2009.
Tony James Simmons is charged with murder and assault occasioning actual bodily harm.
The 26-year-old is from the Bathurst suburb of Windradyne.
Mr Simmons has pleaded not guilty and has already been in custody for more than two years.
Six weeks have been set aside for the trial in the NSW Supreme Court in Sydney.
There has been extensive pre-trial discussions in the lead up to the trial beginning and it has been decided a judge will determine the matter rather than a jury being empanelled.
Mr Russell's body has never been found despite extensive police searches including of a waste management site near Sofala in 2012 and a mine Shaft at Wattle Flat in 2013.