The murder case against four police officers accused of killing Mthokozisi Ntumba during the Wits student protests in March has been postponed to the 6th of August.
The four appeared in the Johannesburg Magistrate’s Court on Friday morning. Ntumba was shot and killed in Braamfontein earlier this year.
The accused face charges of murder, attempted murder, and defeating the ends of justice. All four officers were released on bail of 8-thousand rand last month.
Neatly dressed in formal attire with their faces covered, the four officers appeared briefly in the dock before their case was postponed for further investigations.
The state also told the court that they need more time to attend to queries from the Director of Public Prosecutions before they can move ahead with a trial.
During the appearance, there was a heavy police presence both inside and outside the courtroom.
At the next appearance, the state is expected to tell the court whether they have concluded their investigations and if they’re ready to move forward with the case.
Ntumba was leaving a clinic when he got shot. The 35-year old father of three was a town planner at the City of Tshwane’s metro municipality.
Cele’s visit to Ntumba family
Police Minister Bheki Cele spoke to the media after visiting Ntumba’s family home in Kempton Park east of Johannesburg. “He’s a young man. I saw his photo. He was working for the Department of Human Settlements and has just gained his Master’s degree. He’s a father of three, he’s got a young wife. I think his youngest son is just a year old. It’s a sad issue.”
“It’s a sad situation to look at. It’s something that you can’t really even be able to live with as a human being now, taking all other elements of life out,” says Cele.
In the video below, Police Minister Bheki Cele says there is no explanation for the killing of Mthokozisi Ntumba:
