The bail hearing for a traffic officer from Mamelodi accused of shooting his 33-year-old wife dead has been postponed to next week.

The 53-year-old traffic officer appeared in the Mamelodi Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday to face a charge of murder, premeditated murder, housebreaking, and pointing of a firearm.

Senior prosecutor Advocate Anne-Marie Bendeman says the accused appeared for his bail hearing but the case was postponed and he was remanded in police custody because the defence attorney was not available.

“The accused allegedly shot his wife four to five times in front of her two children around 04:50 on April 1,” adds Bendeman.

She says the accused allegedly used his service pistol. “He handed himself over to police the same day.”

Police spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Mavela Masondo confirms this. “The suspect handed himself to police at Mamelodi East.”

During his latest court appearance, community members again came in support of the family of the deceased and chanted ‘no bail for the accused’ outside the court.

The community welcomed the court’s decision to keep the accused in police custody and pleaded with the court not to grant him bail.

They said this is ‘not the end’ but rather ‘the beginning of justice’, and ‘as the community and organisations against gender-based violence, we vow to support the family of the deceased until justice prevails’.