A 41-year-old man accused of abducting a teenage girl in July will face a depositions hearing in Tauranga District Court early next month.
Craig Howard, a Waikato father of seven and a grandfather, appeared briefly before Community Magistrate Robyn Paterson today.
Sporting shorter, blonder hair since his last appearance, he stood silently in the dock while his lawyer Craig Tuck spoke to the magistrate.
Mrs Paterson remanded Howard on continued bail until October 3 for the pre-trial hearing.
He is charged with abducting a 14-year-old Mt Maunganui College student whom he had befriended a few months earlier while she was on holiday with her family at the Waingaro Hot Springs where Howard worked.
The girl, who lived with her mother, stepfather and young brother, went missing after school two months ago and was allegedly on the run with the man for 12 days.
They were found bathing in a Rotorua hot pool at 11pm on July 15 after extensive publicity prompted a member of the public to tip police off.
Under his bail conditions, Howard is banned from having any contact with the girl or her family.
He has a nightly curfew at his Hamilton address and is not allowed to visit Tauranga except for court appointments or meetings with his lawyer.
