IT was the desperate manhunt for the teenage girl who vanished from a popular nightclub.

Now it’s a court case revolving around a 21-year-old man accused of stalking.

Marnie Clayton’s story has dominated local and national news headlines in recent days and the case looks set to rumble on for many more months.

With this in mind, here’s our guide for what to expect next.

But first, a recap.

What happened?

Marnie Clayton, 18 from Bracknell, went missing from Atik nightclub in Windsor at 2am on Sunday, January 16.

A frantic manhunt for Marnie that involved multiple police forces across the South East was subsequently launched.

Thankfully, she was found in Basingstoke on Monday evening (January 17).

Upon finding Marnie, police arrested a man on suspicion of multiple offences.

READ MORE: Plea given in missing girl court case

Today (January 19), Abid Khan, 21 from Cardigan Close, Reading, was charged with one count of stalking.

Appearing at Reading Magistrates’ Court, Khan pleaded not guilty to the accusation.

So what happens next?

Because he denied the charge, Khan will appear at Reading Crown Court as the chair at Magistrates’ deemed the case too serious to be dealt with at the lower court.

He will appear at Crown Court for a pre-trial hearing on February 21.

What happens here?

A judge will set a date for a trial.

The trial date will most likely be a number of months down the line.

READ MORE: Man charged with stalking over teen girl's disappearance

However, it is worth noting that the trial date set will be provisional as things could change before the case reaches the point of trial.

Should the case get to this point, it may be in the second half of the year.

By way of example, a Reading man charged with murder and arson in the middle of December 2021 was given a provisional trial date of June 17, 2022 -- six months down the line.

Ordinarily, a number of case management hearings take place before the trial gets underway.

When trials go ahead, a jury of 12 decide whether the defendant is guilty or not guilty.

Khan was remanded in custody following his Magistrates’ court hearing on Wednesday, meaning he will remain locked up until the next hearing.