A MAN accused of murdering a pensioner in Herefordshire has been remanded in custody after the first hearing in crown court.

Benjamin Armstrong, 48, was arrested by police and charged after the body of a 78-year-old woman was found at a house near Leominster.

The discovery came as police were investigating a car crash in Eye Lane, Moreton Eye, on Thursday morning, a spokesperson said.

At the first hearing at Worcester Crown Court on Monday, Judge James Burbidge remanded Armstrong, of Login, near Whitland in Carmarthenshire, in custody.

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A plea and trial preparation hearing is set to take place on February 28, the judge told Sharon Bahia, prosecuting, and Mark Thompson, defending, during the 15-minute hearing.

Armstrong is accused of murdering Judith Armstrong and assaulting an emergency worker on Thursday, January 6.

Police initially responded to a car crashing into a telegraph pole in Eye Lane, between the A49 at Ashton and the village of Luston, at around 8am.

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The spokesperson for the force said, after officers made enquiries, they attended an address in Moreton Eye with colleagues from West Midlands Ambulance Service and the 78-year-old was pronounced dead at the scene.

Police remained in the small village, near the National Trust’s Berrington Hall off the A49 north of Leominster, overnight on Thursday as enquiries continued.