'Body in wall' man appears in court

A suspect appeared in court yesterday accused of murdering a Yale graduate whose body was found stuffed in the wall of the university research building where they both worked.

Raymond Clark was charged with killing Annie Le, 24, on the day she was supposed to have married her college sweetheart. Mr Clark, also 24, kept his head bowed during the three-minute hearing. He did not enter a plea and said, "Yes, your honour", when asked if he understood his rights. The judge set bail at $3m and sent him to a holding cell.

James Lewis, the chief of police in New Haven, Connecticut, said Ms Le's death was "workplace violence", adding that reports claiming she had a romantic relationship with Mr Clark were untrue "to my knowledge". Mr Clark was questioned and freed while DNA evidence was investigated. But he was kept under constant surveillance and police spent Wednesday night and yesterday staking out the hotel where he rented a room after being released.

Shortly after 8am, police moved closer, closing off the highway outside the hotel and blocking the road leading into it as they made the arrest. Miss Le was found dead on Sunday, her body hidden in the wall of a building where she worked as a medical researcher.