A man has appeared at court accused of murdering his wife – following the discovery of a woman's body at a Suffolk country park.

Andrius Vengalis, 46, of Bury Road, Brandon, appeared for a short hearing at Suffolk Magistrates' Court just after 12.40pm on Tuesday.

Vengalis appeared in custody, via video link from Bury St Edmunds police investigation centre, accompanied by his legal representative, Bruce Clark, and listening through an interpreter, who also attended the hearing remotely.

Vengalis is accused of murdering Egle Vengaliene, whose body was discovered in a pond at Brandon Country Park on the morning of Friday, April 9.

Thetford & Brandon Times: Tributes left at Brandon Country Park after the body of a woman was discovered.Tributes left at Brandon Country Park after the body of a woman was discovered. (Image: Emily Thomson)

Prosecutor Wayne Ablett told magistrates the alleged offence was 'indictable only' and that the case must be committed to the crown court.

Mr Ablett said a preliminary post-mortem examination had indicated the most likely cause of death to be drowning, adding: "There was a wound to the neck, and ligature marks, but neither of these are believed to have been the cause of death."

Mr Ablett said Vengalis was "married to the deceased and had five children".

Mr Clark said an application had been made for legal aid on Tuesday morning.

A further short hearing was held at Ipswich Crown Court later the same afternoon.

No application was made for bail and Vengalis was remanded in custody by Judge Martyn Levett, who set a date for a plea and trial preparation hearing to take place at the same court on July 19.

A provisional trial date was also set for January 11 next year.

An application was made for a warrant of further detention had been made at Suffolk Magistrates’ Court on Saturday afternoon, granting detectives an additional 36 hours to question Vengalis, who was arrested at about 12.15pm on Friday.

Detectives then made another application to Suffolk Magistrates’ Court for an additional warrant of further detention, which was granted on Sunday evening and allowed another 24 hours.

In a statement released on Monday night, Suffolk Constabulary said a large area of Brandon Country Park remained cordoned off by police as various searches and other enquiries continued.