Grace Millane: Jury sworn in for backpacker murder trial

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Grace MillaneImage source, Lucie Blackman Trust
Image caption,

Miss Millane had been travelling alone in New Zealand

A jury has been sworn in for the trial of a man accused of murdering a British backpacker.

Grace Millane, 22, was last seen in central Auckland, New Zealand, on 1 December last year, before her body was found in bushland a week later.

A 27-year-old local man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, has denied her murder.

The Auckland High Court trial is scheduled to last up to five weeks.

Miss Millane's death prompted an outpouring of public grief in New Zealand with the country's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern apologising to her family.

She had been travelling alone in New Zealand for two weeks, following a six-week group trip through South America.

The family of Miss Millane, from Wickford, Essex, became concerned for the University of Lincoln graduate after she failed to respond to birthday messages on 2 December.

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