DR Tumelo Raymond Ntholeng pleaded not guilty and denied knowing accused one and two.
He denied allegations that he paid R32 000 for his ex-wife, Palesa Mofokeng to be killed.
Ntholeng and his three co-accused appeared again in the fully packed Vereeniging Magistrates Court on Tuesday, 16 April, for bail application.
Accused two abandoned his bail application while all his co-accused were fighting for their freedom.
Ntholeng (34), who is the ex-husband of the killed Riverside High School teacher, Palesa, allegedly showed no remorse when he briefly appeared in court alongside his co-accused Mzwanele Mazeke (36), Jabulani Thabethe (38), and Pakiso Makhanya (39).
They are all charged with conspiracy to commit murder and murder.
Ntholeng said that he didn’t kill his ex-wife and had no intentions of killing her as he was divorcing her and had already married another woman.
He said after they separated, Palesa would tell him that regardless of their separation, they were still married, and that pushed him to register their marriage so that they could divorce legally.
State prosecutor Amukelani Rikhotso asked Ntholeng if he paid R32 000 in January to his co-accused cousin.
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Ntholeng said he was paying his cousin to fix his car engine that broke in August 2023.
But the state argued that Ntholeng paid his cousin to kill Palesa because there are only two options in a marriage, it being divorce and death, and when one partner wants to acquire all the assets, the other chooses to kill the other partner.
Pakiso, accused four, also denied the allegations that he received R32 000 from Dr Ntholeng to kill Palesa, adding that he wasn't guilty and didn’t kill her.
“I was assaulted by police officers to agree with what they told me.”
Pakiso said he is a mechanic and always fixes Dr Ntholeng’s vehicles, and he pays him what he quoted.
The defence lawyers have asked the court for the affidavits to study them.
The case has been postponed to Thursday, 18 April, and the suspects have not been granted bail yet.
