HALIFAX -- A 54-year-old man has been charged with second-degree murder in connection with the death of a 49-year-old woman in Pont-Landry, N.B. last month.

New Brunswick RCMP say at approximately 2 p.m. on Feb. 24, a passerby discovered the body of a woman next to a vehicle on Chemin W. Gautreau in Pont-Landry, a small community in northern New Brunswick.

Police identified the body as 49-year-old Monique Gallien from the Tracadie area. An autopsy determined her death was the result of a homicide.

On Monday, 54-year-old Daniel Jean of Pont-Landry appeared in Tracadie Provincial Court and was charged with second-degree murder.

The court ordered that Jean undergo a five-day fitness for trial evaluation. He is scheduled to return to court in Caraquet on March 8.