Ex-husband of slain Riverside High School teacher pleads not guilty

VANDERBILJPARK - The ex-husband of slain Riverside High School teacher Palesa Mofokeng, Dr. Tumelo Raymond Ntholeng, pleaded not guilty to charges of conspiracy to commit murder and murder. Palesa was shot more than eight times on Friday morning 5 April in Hendrik van Eck Boulevard Vanderbijpark. She was on her way to work when the incident happened. Ntholeng and his three co-accused appeared in a fully packed Vereeniging Magistrates Court on Tuesday, 16 April, for bail application. Denying any involvement in his ex-wife's death, Ntholeng distanced himself from the accusations of paying R32,000 to have her killed. The state argued that Ntholeng paid his cousin to kill Palesa and in turn Ntholeng said he paid his cousin to fix his car that broke down in August 2023. It is alleged that accused number one, Mzwanele Mazeke’s stated in his affidavit that he is the owner of the gun that allegedly shot and killed Palesa, but he later said police members forced him to confess to shooting Palesa. It is also alleged that investigators were informed of an attempted claim of R4-million from an insurance company after Mofokeng's death. The policy was frozen because Mofokeng's murder is under investigation. The case was expected to continue today, Thursday, 18 April. This is a developing story.