A man faces multiple charges after allegedly trying to rob four people before their ute left a country road and crashed into a tree, killing all occupants.

Alec St Clair, 29, returns to court in May to face the murder allegations, as well as charges of assault with intent to rob while armed with an offensive weapon and causing grievous bodily harm.

He was refused bail at Coffs Harbour Local Court on Tuesday after an investigation that ran for more than 12 months.

Police allege he was driving a silver Toyota Corolla as it pursued four people in a Mazda BT-50 early on February 24, 2024.

The ute left Back Channel Road at Wardell, south of Ballina on the NSW north coast, and hit a tree.

Driver Mark Dodds, 36, was killed, along with passengers Sophie-Lee Fullagar, 33, Benjamin Watego, 50, and James Doherty, 42.

Their family members joined police in appealing for information in May, when footage of the alleged chase in the lead-up to the crash was released by investigators.

The footage showed the Corolla closely following the ute as it travelled over a bridge.

“My daughter was an innocent victim in this and she deserves justice,” Fullagar’s mother Rebecca said at the time.

“They all deserve justice because they were all people, they all have families.”

-AAP