A Montana man charged in the 1996 cold case murder of a Kirkland woman pleaded not guilty today in King County Superior Court.

Clifford Everell Reed, 59, was extradited from Montana to King County on Feb. 6. He faces second-degree murder charges for allegedly killing Sandi Rae Johnson on April 26, 1996.

Reed, who was the woman’s co-worker during her disappearance, was booked into King County Jail Wednesday on $5 million bail.

Johnson was reported missing in 1996 and her body was found eight years later near Highway 410.

Reed left Washington shortly after the woman was reported missing, according to court documents. Detectives conducted multiple interviews throughout the investigation and Reed’s friends revealed his alleged infatuation with the woman.

Detectives with the King County Sheriff’s Office arrested him at his Victor, Mont. home in early December.

Reed’s case-setting hearing is scheduled for March 14 at King County Superior Court.