Man charged with murder after human remains found in bushland

The body of a Sydney man was found in a shallow grave in a paddock, while another man remained on the run from police for nine days.

A man wanted over suspected murder managed to evade police for nine days, before being found while sleeping in his car in Sydney’s northwest.

James French, 24, was arrested in Glenorie on Sunday afternoon, NSW Police said, following the discovery of a missing man’s body in long grass in Gleness Place, Glenorie on March 14.

The body of John Birch, 39, was found in the paddock shortly after he was reported missing to police.

James French, was last seen jumping over a fence on Old Northern Rd the same day as the grisly discovery and has been wanted by police ever since, The Daily Telegraph reported.

Detective Superintendent Naomi Moore said the man was arrested on Sunday.

“He’s probably a little bit tired right now, probably hasn’t eaten a lot,” she told reporters on Sunday afternoon.

“He’s in reasonable spirits. We’re giving him some food, and when he’s ready, we will offer him an opportunity to be spoken to.”

NSW Police later confirmed on Sunday night the man has been charged with murder.

He was refused bail to appear before Parramatta Local Court on Monday.

Detectives found the man sleeping in a car, Det Supt Moore said.

“There’s been reports of this person camping in backyards,” she said.

“That comes with fear. The community were no doubt in fear while they waited for us to do our jobs … today is a good day for us to be able to alleviate that fear.”

Police said Birch and French were known to each other through drug trade, and stressed they don’t believe the death was a random attack.

A post-mortem examination of Birch’s body was inconclusive, Supt Moore said, but there was evidence the man died from blunt force trauma.

Strike Force Halderen has been formed to investigate the circumstances surrounding the death of a man whose body was found on a property in Sydney’s north west. Picture: NewsWire / Monique Harmer

Police block traffic near Gleness Place at Glenorie where a body was found. Picture: NewsWire/ Sam Ruttyn

The suspicious death has been subject of an investigation by detectives from Strike Force Halderen.

Two men, aged 24 and 34, and a 35-year-old woman, were arrested at the scene on March 14, and taken to Castle Hill Police Station.

However, they were released pending further investigation.

NSW Police Superintendent Naomi Moore earlier said two crime scenes were established and that the body was “covered by items”.

The body was found “within a couple of hundred metres of the address, in a bit of a rural area, within a paddock,” she told reporters.

“Police, during the course of their canvass and those initial inquiries, did come to identify what they believe to be a body in the middle of that paddock.”

Police are still looking to speak to several people.