A 39-year-old man who allegedly dumped his partner at the Palmerston hospital last month with two stab wounds to her chest and fleeing after telling healthcare staff she was “unwell” has been charged with murder, the NT Police said.

Police said in a statement Tuesday that the man is alleged to have been driving with his 47-year-old female partner through Yarrawonga when he allegedly assaulted her on the night of Friday, September 18.

The man, later identified as Connor Thomas O’Neil, allegedly took the woman to the hospital where he later fled while staff assisted her with the stab wounds.

Police said she died 10 days later on September 28, “as a result of her injuries”.

Mr O’Neill was arrested later on the night of the incident and charged with acts intended to cause serious harm.

The charge was upgraded to murder when he appeared in Darwin Local Court on Tuesday.

Defence lawyer Koulla Roussos made an application for bail assessment, pointing to a section from the cause of death certificate and suggesting a trial would not likely occur before sometime next year.

The DPP opposed bail due to the seriousness of the charge.

Judge David Woodroffe allowed the bail request to be assessed which will come back at a bail hearing scheduled for November 3.