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A South Otago man today admitted murdering Michael Hutchings, whose body was found in the Clutha River on January 12.
The 38-year-old man, one of two people charged with the murder of 18-year-old Mr Hutchings near Kaitangata, pleaded guilty in the High Court in Dunedin today.
He was remanded in custody for sentence on September 25, The Otago Daily Times reported.
A 29-year-old woman, jointly charged with the murder, will go to trial. She and the man will also face trial on a separate charge of raping a 15-year-old girl on December 28 last year.
Their names remain suppressed.
Mr Hutchings, a dairy farm worker, was stabbed in the neck and abdomen and his body wrapped in a white bed cover, tied with black nylon and weighted with two heavy metal bars.
A local farmer saw the body while going up the river and contacted police who recovered it.
- NZPA
