News Service from House Harris

NSW: Murdered prostitute stabbed four times after sex: court

SYDNEY, Jan 15 AAP - A man charged with the murder of a Sydney prostitute allegedly stabbed the 29-year-old four times in the neck after the couple had sex, before dumping her naked body in the grounds of a church.

Rachael Campbell's body was found in the grounds of St Joseph's Church, Rosebery, on November 7, 1998.

She was found wrapped in two bloodied blankets and a fitted bed sheet along with two used condoms, a condom wrapper and a $50 note.

Semen taken from the body and the condoms failed to draw a DNA match until November last year when, after a decade, investigators made a positive match.

Richard Edward Durrough, 31, was arrested in Perth, where he had been living, and charged with murder before being extradicted to NSW.

He faced Sydney Central Local Court on Thursday where he did not apply for bail, but for the first time facts of the alleged murder were made public.

Police allege the night before she was found dead, Ms Campbell and her boyfriend drove to Darlinghurst so she could work as prostitute to buy the couple heroin.

When Ms Campbell disappeared about 9pm, her boyfriend assumed she had a customer and waited for her return.

By 9am the next day she still had not returned.

Two women found the body about 10.30am.

"A post mortem (examination) showed four fatal stab wounds to the neck causing severe blood loss," police said in documents before the court.

She had a bruised forehead and lips, bite marks on her left wrist and left hand, and cuts to her fingers.

"Physical evidence ... strongly supports the fact that the deceased was involved in a violent altercation with the accused during or soon after sexual activity with him," police said.

"The accused then fatally stabbed the deceased, wrapped her in bed linen and later disposed of her body."

At the time of the murder, police allege Durrough lived in Sydney, less than 5km from where the body was found.

Durrough has not entered a plea to the single count of murder and the matter has been adjourned until March 12.