The suspected killer of Nelspruit deputy sheriff Michelle Jones appeared in the Nelspruit Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday after he handed himself over to police.

Hendry Dlamini (32) is accused of shooting both Jones and her partner Julio Baumgat in Nelsville, Nelspruit on the night of October 20.

Jones, Baumgat and a friend had driven to a shop near a park in Nelsville at about 19:00 when the shooting occurred.

Baumgat was struck in the arm six times by bullets, and Jones also suffered multiple bullet wounds.

The couple, who have been together since high school, were rushed to a nearby hospital, where Jones was pronounced dead.

It is alleged that Dlamini was disgruntled with the couple over a house they had recently purchased in the area.

Baumgat’s family told the Lowvelder that Jones had gone to the police the day before the shooting to report threats made to her by a man after they bought the house in Nelsville. The police allegedly told her to take out a protection order against him.

Dlamini had handed himself over to the Nelspruit police on Tuesday.

The Mpumalanga National Prosecuting Authority’s spokesperson, Monica Nyuswa, confirmed that Dlamini was expected to make his next court appearance next Tuesday for a formal bail application.