A homeless man has disrupted his first court hearing after being charged with the murder of a young pharmacist.
Simon Hunter, 54, faced Melbourne Magistrates Court via video link from Heidelberg Police Station on Thursday afternoon.
He has been charged over the murder of pharmacist Kum Chuan 'KC' Leong, 29, who was found dead at a Bellfield apartment in Melbourne's northeast on Wednesday.
Wearing nothing but a pair of dark shorts, Hunter appeared agitated and began yelling from a police interview room over the link when Magistrate Tara Hartnett told him he was being represented by a lawyer in court.
"I'd rather have no lawyer and speak for myself," he told the court.
The hearing was earlier stood down after Hunter appeared by video link peeking through the window of his cell door at the police station.
"It was not my intention that he appear in this way - a cell in this form," Ms Hartnett said.
"It's just for safety reasons, Your Honour," the police guard said.
His defence lawyer said Hunter had been experiencing back pain and was diagnosed with schizophrenia.
She said he hadn't had his depot injection, a liquid form of medication that releases slowly so it lasts longer.
The magistrate asked when his last injection was.
"It was two week ago," the defence responded.
"I don't want the injections ... No, I don't want it," Hunter interjected.
The magistrate ordered Hunter to have his hands and fingers swabbed for DNA evidence.
She told him he would next appear in court on January 14.
"You're not on my side," he said.
The prosecutor told the court Mr Leong's family had arrived in Melbourne on a flight from Malaysia on Thursday but did not attend the hearing.
His shocked friends and colleagues have described the 29-year-old as a "warm and generous" leader and mentor for many emerging pharmacists.
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