The man who allegedly shot dead an off-duty policeman in an apparent road rage incident last Monday was denied bail on Friday.

He is likely to remain in custody until his next court appearance on January 22 next year.

Asad Ramjan (29), who faces charges of murder, teared up and appeared stunned as the bail judgment was handed down.

Magistrate Padmini Chetty said she found no exceptional reasons had been provided to justify granting the accused’s application for bail.

On the contrary, she noted that the brutality of the incident had caused widespread outrage.

She said the charge against Ramjan was a schedule 6 offence. Ramjan’s defence had argued that the charge should be a schedule 5 charge but the state countered that the shooting was premeditated.

A schedule 6 offence places the burden on the accused to convince the court that there are exceptional circumstances that exist which qualify him to be released on bail.

The commission of this offence has caused outrage amongst the deceased’s colleagues as well as in the community. The brutally in the matter before me is shocking. The accused did not deny that he shot the deceased multiple times.

“The accused failed to show exceptional circumstances. Therefore bail is denied,” she said, adding that releasing Ramjan will undermine confidence in the justice system.

Magistrate Chetty said the investigation remained incomplete as ballistic reports and witness statements are still outstanding.

Foxhill resident Ramjan, a firearms expert who works as a sales assistant in a gun dealership, stood in stunned silence, tearing up as the magistrate delivered the verdict.

The courtroom was packed with family and uniformed colleagues of Constable Thabani Gwala (35), who suffered multiple gunshots in the alleged road rage incident between him and Ramjan last Monday in Oribi Road. As she delivered her ruling, the public gallery was filled with murmurs of approval.

Shortly before the proceedings were formally adjourned, as the court orderly escorted the accused back to the holding cells, onlookers supporting the family of Constable Gwala jeered at Ramjan saying that ‘it serves him right’.

During the bail application, the detective investigating the case, Warrant Officer Jurgen Rencken, said he believed that Ramjan posed a threat to the public and to witnesses.

Outlining the investigation’s version of events, he alleged that Ramjan had flashed his lights then overtaken Gwala, who was travelling along Oribi Road.

He said Gwala then overtook Ramjan and that both drivers stopped. Ramjan jumped out of his vehicle armed with a retractable iron baton and his firearm.

Rencken alleged that after Ramjan was disarmed of the iron baton by Gwala, he drew his firearm and fired multiple shots at him.

Advocate Joseph Wolmarans, representing Ramjan in the bail application, said his client denied acting unlawfully and said one of the witness statements in the docket collaborated Ramjan’s version of events.

The matter was adjourned to January 22 for the director of public prosecutions to make a decision on the case.