Police cars sit outside the Saade International Inn in south Ottawa where a woman was found dead Saturday. Alistair Steele/CBC

The man charged with the second-degree murder of a young woman at a south-end Ottawa motel made his first court appearance Monday.

Patrick Dunac, 34, is charged with second-degree murder in the death of 23-year-old Jessica Riopelle.

The body of Riopelle was found at the Saade International Inn at the corner of Bank Street and Rideau Road, just after 8:30 Saturday evening.

Dunac, who addressed the court from a speaker phone in a holding cell downstairs in the court house, said he understood the charges that he was facing.

His lawyer requested that Dunac meet with a court psychiatrist on Wednesday, who will determine if there is enough evidence to request a full mental assessment.

Dunac has a long criminal record dating back over the past 15 years including numerous assault and theft charges as well as more than a dozen other offences.

Jessica Riopelle, 23, was friends with Scott Ledoux, the 22-year-old who died at a St. Patrick's Day party earlier in March. Facebook

In the meantime, he has been ordered not to contact 10 people including several members of the victim's family.

Dunac is due back in court on Wednesday.

A "sweet girl"

According to friends and various media reports, Riopelle worked as an exotic dancer at Diamonds Cabaret strip club, which is adjacent to the motel where she was found.

She was friends with Scott Ledoux, the 22-year-old who died at a St. Patrick's Day party earlier in March.

Ashley Diotte, a close friend of Riopelle's since age 13, described her as "a sweet girl" with "a lot of potential."

Diotte, who used to work with Riopelle at the same strip club before moving to Windsor, Ont., said Riopelle was taking classes at Algonquin College and had talked about not wanting to work at the club anymore.

"The life at the strip club or in the motel rooms was not very good. You were out there to have fun and party and make the money you had to make," she said breaking down in tears.

"It's not a great lifestyle that you have there and it just really sucks that it's your best friend who dies. Living a lifestyle that you once lived and you left and you could have had a chance to take her with you and you didn't."

Diotte said she had saved enough money to move to Windsor and said last month Riopelle had talked about moving there too.