The 51-year-old is one of two people charged with killing Dubbo father Alois Rez.

Rez, 33, was last seen on July 28 and his body has not been found.

Yesterday the first details of the prosecution case against Roff were heard by the court as the defendant made an unsuccessful bid for bail.

Roff and co-accused Sarah Renea Tarrant, 24, have been remanded in custody since their arrest on August 10.

The 51-year-old, who is yet to offer a plea, appeared via audiovisual link from Lithgow Correctional Centre yesterday morning.

The accused waited quietly as magistrate Andrew Eckhold read documents tendered by a representative of the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).

The magistrate checked with the prosecution that blood found in a vehicle belonging to the accused matched the DNA of the victim.

Then with Dubbo detectives present in the courtroom, Roff's lawyer argued "exceptional circumstances" outweighed the presumption against bail.

The defence, a representative of the Aboriginal Legal Service, questioned the strength of the prosecution case, which included evidence from the co-accused.

The defence submitted Tarrant had told Mr Rez's mother he was missing, but later told police he had been murdered.

The defence said Tarrant could seem to have a "tendency to lie to cover her own tracks".

If a jury did not accept her credibility, the strength of the prosecution case was quite low, the defence said.

The court heard Roff had lived in the Dubbo area all his life, had six adult children and owned two properties, one in Fitzroy Street and one on Sappa Bulga Road.

The accused had "no relevant" criminal record and $200,000 was offered as surety.

The defence said Roff's record was evidence he would not pose a flight risk and argued for his client's release from custody, given the case was in its "infancy".

"It is quite clear the case would go on for perhaps some years before finalisation," he said.

The magistrate said blood in Roff's car alleged by the prosecution to belong to Rez and text messages were part of the case.

"There really is quite a lot of material - no body... it is not correct to say it is a weak case," Mr Eckhold said.

The defence said he would not go so far as to say it was a "very weak case" but it was far from conclusive about the fate of Mr Rez.

His argument did not persuade Mr Eckhold, who said he would need to have "serious concerns" about the prosecution case before granting bail.

The magistrate said it was difficult to analyse when there was evidence from a co-accused, but said there were a number of other factors and physical evidence.

He refused bail and ordered Roff to reappear on October 9.