Police have arrested a 33-year-old man in connection with the murder of insolvency lawyer Bouwer van Niekerk in September last year.
The man was arrested on Thursday after intensive investigations by the Gauteng Provincial Investigating Unit, police spokesperson Col Dimakatso Nevhuhulwi said.
He appeared before the Johannesburg magistrate’s court on Monday, and his case was postponed until May 11 for a formal bail application.
On September 5, police reported Van Niekerk was shot dead at his offices in Saxonwold. Four men came to the practice under the pretext of clients who had booked an appointment.
Only two of the men went inside, and while in the boardroom, gunshots were heard. The unknown men fled the scene.
The DA has welcomed the arrest, saying while it marked progress, it could not be mistaken for justice.
“The DA will be closely monitoring this case as it unfolds. It is critical that this investigation does not end with the arrest of an alleged hitman but that it leads to the identification and prosecution of those who planned, financed and authorised this killing,” DA MP Ian Cameron said.
He said reports that Van Niekerk had received threats linked to a matter involving an alleged cryptocurrency scheme further pointed to the possibility of a broader criminal network behind the murder.
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