In a ruling handed down on Monday at a Hong Kong court, Judge Bina Chainrai declared 29-year-old banker Rurik Jutting mentally fit to stand trial on murder charges, based on the results of psychiatric tests.

Jutting is accused of killing two Indonesian women, Seneng Mujiasih and Sumarti Ningsih, whose bodies were found at his high rise apartment in Wan Chai, near the metropolis' red light district on November 1. The body of one of the women was discovered in a suitcase which had been left on the balcony.

The judge agreed to a request by the prosecution for the case to be adjourned until July 6, to give investigators more time to analyze forensic evidence including DNA. Lawyers for Jutting did not oppose the uncharacteristically long delay.

Wearing the same black T-shirt he had worn at his last court appearance a fortnight ago, Jutting stood quietly in the dock.

Case of extremes

The case highlighted the extreme differences in wealth within the expat community in the Asian financial hub.

Jutting had attended the University of Cambridge and worked for Bank of America Merrill Lynch. The two young female victims were thought to have been domestic workers.

se/nm (AP, AFP, Reuters)