LOS ANGELES -- An El Segundo man pleaded not guilty Monday to a charge that he murdered his ex-wife, a South Bay real estate agent whose body was found in the trunk of her car on a San Diego street.

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BODY FOUND IN TRUNK Gruesome Discovery Found In Car

Erwin Percy Howard, who is accused of the July 2004 slaying of Julia "Deede'' Keller, remains jailed in lieu of $1 million bail pending a bail review hearing on Thursday.

Superior Court Judge Paula Adele Mabrey set a March 21 date for a preliminary hearing to determine if there is enough evidence to require the 51-year-old aircraft mechanic to stand trial.

Keller's body was found wrapped in a blanket in the trunk of her 1999 Mercedes-Benz E320 in the 1000 block of 11th Avenue in San Diego last July 15 -- four days after the 54-year-old grandmother was reported missing from her El Segundo home.

Armed with a search and arrest warrant, Los Angeles County sheriff's and El Segundo police detectives took her second husband into custody without incident last Thursday.

"We're not going to talk about a whole lot of particulars of the case -- motive, cause of death, things of that nature obviously are things that are going to come out during the trial,'' Capt. Ray Peavy of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Homicide Bureau said last week.

"We obviously believe that she died at the hands of her ex-husband,'' he said. "We believe that her body was obviously transported to San Diego, where it was left in the car that it was found in.''

Keller was last seen alive the night of July 8 at her home in the 500 block of Richmond Street in El Segundo after being dropped off by a date.

Howard, who left the country around the time Keller was reported missing, told reporters on his return that he had gone to Bolivia to care for his ailing mother, who had fallen and hurt her arm and back.

Detectives who questioned Howard when he returned to Los Angeles International Airport called him a "person of interest,'' searched his home in the 800 block of Hillcrest Street and took a DNA sample from him.

"We attempted to eliminate this suspect, but were never able to,'' Peavy said last week. "In fact, the more we looked at him, the more it became apparent to us that he was, in fact, the killer.''

Howard had repeatedly denied any involvement in his ex-wife's death and said he last saw her about a week before she was reported missing.

As long ago as July 29, authorities said they were close to an arrest. But it took months for forensic experts from the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, the San Diego Police Department and the San Diego County Medical Examiner's Office to complete their investigation.

El Segundo police Chief Jack Wayt told reporters last week that he had spoken with Keller's son, Michael.

"He's feeling a sense of relief, and he understands that this is going to go a long time. There's still a lot ahead of us,'' Wayt said.

Howard is facing a potential life prison term if convicted of his ex-wife's slaying, according to the District Attorney's Office.