Shairenne Ruttley, Robert McGrady and Andrew Ellis to stand trial in Tamworth court after alleged armed robbery of man in West Tamworth in 2020

Shairenne Ruttley, Robert McGrady and Andrew Ellis appeared together in Tamworth District Court this week, where they each pleaded not guilty to the charges against them.

The court heard the trio are jointly accused of attacking a man in West Tamworth on May 9, last year, wounding him and stealing his backpack, which contained several personal possessions and $70 cash.

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The police case is that Ruttley, McGrady and Ellis were "in the company of each other" when they allegedly attacked the man and injured him, before making off with the backpack.

A second alternative charge against all three co-accused was that they recklessly wounded the man.

The case is set to be heard by a jury during a week-long trial in the district court, which has been set down for November this year.

But, holding one trial in one courtroom for three people - all with their own lawyers and barristers - during the era of COVID-19 has posed its own challenges, the judge said.

"I am not sure where we are left now with three lots of counsel," Judge Deborah Payne told the court.

Justice Payne ultimately scheduled the trial for November with a readiness hearing set down for three weeks earlier to check on the status of the case.

The trio are on bail to live in Tamworth and Justice Payne ordered the current conditions to remain ahead of the trial.

"Bail to continue," she said.

A fourth co-accused charged in connection to the incident remains before the court.

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