Phillip Dunn, 59, and Darcy McNamara, 42, were charged with committing the murder “on or about July 26”.

Missing Persons Squad detectives located a body in the backyard of a Ryan Avenue property on Wednesday afternoon.

Police say the exact cause of death will be determined after a post-mortem.

Both Dunn and McNamara were handcuffed and hung their heads at times during their short appearance at Wangaratta Magistrates Court on Thursday.

Dunn’s barrister Charles Morgan said his client had issues which needed to be addressed while in custody.

“My client has a previous diagnosis of bipolar disorder, not currently on medication,” he said.

“He is also withdrawing from alcohol addiction.”

He requested a nurse also see Dunn over an infected scalp irritation.

McNamara’s lawyer described his client as an Aboriginal man who was “fairly vulnerable in custody”.

It was revealed McNamara has an acquired brain injury and a diagnosis of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.

Neither of the men applied for bail on Thursday.

They were remanded in custody until the next court date on February 14 next year.

The alleged date of the murder, July 26, was the last time 34-year-old Mr Day was seen alive.

A friend had reported Mr Day missing 10 days after he was seen leaving the home.

Their appearance in Wangaratta Magistrates Court was delayed by almost three hours on Thursday when technical issues with the system stopped the case going ahead.

The hearing was eventually moved to a smaller courtroom upstairs, with Dunn and McNamara appearing via video link from the dock in the larger courtroom downstairs.

No friends or family of Mr Day or either of his alleged murderers attended court.

Police from the homicide squad remained at the Ryan Avenue property on Thursday where the body had been discovered.

Condolences were being offered to Mr Day’s mother Marilyn on social media.

Mr Day was described as a good person when not using alcohol or drugs, but his problems had been getting worse.