A TRIAL date has been set for a man accused of murdering his teenage Canadian girlfriend while she visited him in the UK.

Jack Sepple, 23, is accused of the murder of Ashley Wadsworth, 19, in Chelmsford, Essex on Tuesday.

Ashley flew to the UK to meet her new partner, Sepple, in November last year.

The pair visited a number of tourist hotspots including a trip to Rye with his family.

Wearing a blue and yellow tracksuit, Sepple appeared at Chelmsford Crown Court yesterday via video link from HMP Chelmsford.

He spoke only to confirm his name and no plea was entered to the charge.

But during the hearing Judge Christopher Morgan set a provisional trial date for September 5. He said the trial is expected to last two to three weeks.

Sepple, of Chelmsford, was remanded in custody and is due to enter a plea at the same court on March 7.

Paying tribute, Great aunt Tova Wadsworth said that Ashley was on the "trip of a lifetime" after arriving in the UK from her home in Vernon, British Columbia in November last year.

She said: "Ashley was a beautiful young lady and full of love and kindness for all in her life.

"This was a trip of a lifetime... Nothing of this makes any sense. Her family is heartbroken and struggles to understand."

Ashley was described as a "woman of great faith" as she joined the Church of the Latter-day Saints aged 18.

Fellow churchgoer Daniel Seaman said: "She was in England to live with her boyfriend, she was excited to live abroad and she always wanted to get out of the small town life in Vernon, BC."

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