Bodies lay undiscovered for days

Dev and Ravneet Sangha with newborn Anna in April 2008. Photo / Supplied

The bodies of Ravneet and Anna Sangha lay in their Tauranga home for two days before police found them, court documents show.

Deepak Nagpal, a 23-year-old fruit packer, appeared in the Tauranga District Court yesterday charged with the June 4 murder of 2-year-old Anna Sangha.

Nagpal had made a previous appearance in court on June 11 charged with the murder of the toddler's mother Ravneet Sangha on the same day.

Police discovered Mrs Sangha's body at their Otumoetai home on June 6 - two days after she was killed - following a tip-off from a member of the public.

Anna's body lay undiscovered for 20 more hours, despite an intensive search of the local area by police and search and rescue teams.

Yesterday in court, Nagpal stole occasional glances at the gallery where Dev Sangha, the husband and father to Ravneet and Anna, and at least six other members of Tauranga's Sikh community were sitting.

Mr Sangha, who was in India at the time of the killings, could be seen glaring menacingly at Nagpal, who stood in the dock nervously but quietly.

Mr Sangha would not comment when approached, saying "everything has been said already".

Judge Thomas Ingram remanded Nagpal in custody to reappear on July 16.