Niraj Prasad denies murdering Faiz Ali. He appeared at the High Court in Christchurch today. Photo / George Heard
An accountant accused of murdering his ex-wife's partner in central Christchurch last month can be named for the first time.
Niraj Prasad, 38, had interim name suppression lapse this morning.
He is accused of killing Faiz Ali, a manager at Indian grocery store Krazy Price Mart, at a central Christchurch address on February 21.
Prasad was arrested and appeared at Christchurch District Court the following day, when he was granted interim name suppression.
But at the High Court in Christchurch this morning, name suppression lapsed when Prasad made a brief appearance from custody via audio visual link (AVL).
Justice Cameron Mander remanded him in custody without plea until April 19.
Ali was born and raised in Sabeto, in the Nadi area of Fiji.
His father passed away just a few weeks before he died.
He is survived by his mother and siblings in Nadi, Auckland and Brisbane.
Friends of Ali described him as "a wonderful young man" and an "amazing" person.
Colleague Nishaal Nikesh said Ali was a joyful person who was great with his customers.
"He was a very kind-hearted guy, very helpful," he said.
"He didn't have any personal grudges or any fights with anyone, as far as I know."
Nikesh said Ali's colleagues were reeling over the news of his alleged murder.
"It's really shocking for us to hear this but we're still yet to know what was going on inside, we didn't know about his personal life," he said.
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