A professional chef has faced court, accused of stabbing a 15-year-old boy to death in bushland in Sydney’s south-west.

Jacob Greig, 32, was formally refused bail during a brief hearing in Parramatta Bail Court on Sunday.

The teenager’s body was found off Wilton Park Road at Wilton on Saturday morning. Greig was arrested and charged with murder after handing himself in at Narellan Police Station shortly after 4pm.

Police allege he stabbed the teen during a physical altercation that began after the boy asked for a lift home on Friday night. He reportedly approached a car where Greig was sitting in the passenger seat, pulling the door handle off.

“I’m trying to get home,” he said, according to police, before Greig allegedly charged at him yelling, “I’ll f—ing get you good, I’m going to chop your f—ing hand off”.

Greig allegedly slashed the teenager across his right forearm before the boy jumped onto the car as it started and fell off.

Greig allegedly left the 15-year-old for dead before dumping the knife in a bin at his Picton home.

The boy’s body wasn’t found until 7.30am on Saturday, when his friends found him unresponsive on grass about 30 metres from where the incident unfolded.

The court heard some of the confrontation was captured on CCTV and Greig also made some admissions to police on body-worn video. He did not participate in a formal police interview.

The Sydney Morning Herald reports that Greig has said he is a chef at Bargo Sports Club. He reportedly calls himself “Harry Potter” on social media and describes himself as a “professional pyromaniac by trade”.

Greig is next scheduled to appear in court via audio visual link on January 8.

Police believe roughly a dozen young campers had gathered on Friday night.

Acting superintendent Tim Calman said state crime officers were called to the location to help as there were “a lot of moving parts”.

Police believe the boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, is from the Wilton area.

His family had been notified of his death, Calman said, and were being supported by police.

“We put our thoughts out to the family,” he said.

“They will be doing it tough this afternoon.”

Police are appealing for anyone with knowledge of the incident or dashcam or mobile footage to come forward, as well as anyone who might have been in the area since 6pm on Friday.

-with AAP