Forty witnesses take stand in Troy Ruttley's murder trial accused of killing Johann Morgan in Tamworth in 2015

Whitney Dennis was arrested in Dubbo on December 21, 2015, when her father Troy Jason Ruttley was taken into custody and charged with the murder of Tamworth mother-of-eight Johann Morgan – his on-again, off-again partner.

In her father’s NSW Supreme Court murder trial in Tamworth, Ms Dennis was questioned about her statement to police at the time.

Oxley detectives asked her “why she hadn’t asked about Johann Morgan’s disappearance” – after she was reported missing in August, that year.

The court heard she told police “no”, and when the detective asked why not, the jury was told on Thursday she said: “I don’t want to know …. I don’t want to know, I don’t want to be involved”.

Ms Dennis said she “occasionally” talked to Ms Morgan and told the jury she had not seen her since she went to Ms Morgan’s Cole Rd house on August 8, 2015, to get cigarettes from her dad.

She said Ms Morgan was sitting at the table but opened a window when Ruttley walked out of the house to meet his daughter.

“[She said] what the **** are you doing or something … and then tried to climb out the window,” Ms Dennis said, adding her father told Ms Morgan “I’m talking to my daughter is that alright”.

Forty witnesses have now taken the stand in the trial since Tuesday.

Amanda Mitchell said she would occasionally speak to her neighbour, Ruttley, if she saw him tinkering with cars in the backyard.

"I'd seen her next door numerous times," she told the court of Ms Morgan, adding she noticed the publicity on her disappearance in the news.

She said she asked Ruttley about his white stationwagon when she saw it in the media that it was part of the police investigation.

“I asked did you have your car stolen,” Ms Mitchell said, and told the jury Ruttley told her “no, it broke down over there”.

She said he told her someone must have burnt it.

Andrew Ellis was called to the witness box with the jury shown photos of him driving Ruttley out towards the quarry where the stationwagon which Ruttley had been driving was destroyed by fire.

He has admitted to torching it.

Mr Ellis said he followed Ruttley out in August, 2015, along the Oxley Highway – where they were snapped on an RMS camera – towards the quarry.

“I seen Troy near the Mitsubishi stationwagon and then he got out and come and jumped in Shareena's car,” he said before he drove him back to Tamworth.

“The cab was lit up, like it was bright.”

He said he then went back out later to the quarry because Ruttley “said let's go and have a look at the damage", but when cross-examined he said he didn’t notice anything about the inside of the car before he followed him out to the quarry.

The trial continues.