The man accused of the murder of Millicent mother-of-three Synamin Bell was remanded in custody when he appeared in the Mount Gambier Magistrates Court on Tuesday.

Millicent man Cody James Edwards, 25, is alleged to have murdered the 26-year-old at her Millicent home on Saturday.

Mr Edwards was arrested that night, was not granted police bail and was charged with her murder the following day.

Appearing via video link, he did not enter a plea and made no application for bail.
Visiting magistrate Jack Fahey ordered him to reappear in the same court at 11.30am on December 19.

Mr Edwards was represented in court by Mount Gambier solicitor John Williamson while the police prosecutor was Stephanie Rickard, of Mount Gambier Police.

Meanwhile, police are continuing their investigations into the circumstances of Ms Bell’s death with specialist forensic investigators returning to her rented Poole Street home this week.

Mr Edwards has been employed as a member of Wattle Range Council’s “outside” work crew for a few years.

Around 40 of his colleagues were addressed by senior council personnel at the Millicent depot after the end of the long weekend at 7am on Tuesday.

The gathering lasted 15 minutes and is understood to have been an opportunity for the managers to check on their welfare and to offer support.

Meanwhile, a GoFundMe page established by the family of Ms Bell is steadily working towards its target of $20,000 to benefit her children with well over 100 donations.

Wattle Range Council Mayor Des Noll told The SE Voice that the death of Ms Bell was a tragedy.

“We have lost one of our own and the community of Millicent is hurting,” Mayor Noll said.

“We look after each other. Domestic incidents in any form are not acceptable.”

The prosecutor sought a lengthy adjournment to enable police to analyse evidence gathered at the scene.