Husband of murdered pastor, Liezel de Jager, in court. Images: X/@DasenThathiah
/Facebook/Liezelde Jager
WATCH: Husband of murdered pastor, Liezel De Jager, in court
The husband of pastor Liezel de Jager has appeared in court on Monday for her murder more than two years ago. Here is the latest.
Husband of murdered pastor, Liezel de Jager, in court. Images: X/@DasenThathiah
/Facebook/Liezelde Jager
The husband of pastor Liezel de Jager appeared in court on Monday, more than two years after her murder in Amanzimtoti.
HUSBAND OF MURDERED PASTOR ARRESTED
The 45-year-old Werner de Jager appeared in the Durban Magistrate’s Court on a charge of murder.
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Action Society leader Ian Cameron said It has been 775 days since the murder of Liezel.
“The case has been postponed to the 7th of December where he will likely apply for bail. We will keep fighting for justice for her.”
Ian Cameron
Werner de Jager is expected back in court next month for his formal bail application.
“It took 775 days to see Werner de Jager in handcuffs. We hope that today will be the only delay in the court process and justice will be swift.”
Cameron said it was both a relief and a bitter day.
“Bitter, because this case could have been solved much sooner had the original investigative team attempted to do any police work. Liezel’s parents and her two daughters would have had closure and would have been saved from the further trauma they had to endure caused by unanswered questions, suspicions and worries about Werner’s role in Liezel’s death. Bitter, because had he been arrested, two women who died in a car crash in April this year would still be alive today. Werner allegedly caused the crash and is facing charges of culpable homicide.”
Cameron said.
According to Cameron, Werner was a person of interest in Liezel’s murder from the very beginning, but the investigative team in Amanzimtoti failed to follow up on some of the most elementary elements in the case.
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Police arrested Werner on Friday in Bloemfontein.
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Police spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe said the South African Police Service (SAPS) Cold Case Unit has effected an arrest in the case of the murder of Liezel De Jager.
WERNER DE JAGER WILL APPEARED IN COURT ON MONDAY
“The unit took over the case on 06 November 2023 and, within two weeks, managed to trace and link the suspect. The members worked tirelessly in analysing and following up on information and in the early hours of 24 November 2023, the team made an arrest in Bloemfontein.”
SAPS
DE JAGER’S BODY WAS FOUND OUTSIDE HER HOUSE TWO YEARS AGO
The South African reported in 2021 that the body of De Jager was found on 13 October 2021.
The 38-year-old De Jager was reportedly found by Werner just after 7 am with strangle marks around her neck.
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HER HUSBAND WENT MISSING AFTER HER MURDER
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According to reports, Werner was inside the house getting their two daughters, Ila and Lané.
Shortly after her death, Werner was reported missing for days. He was found in a serious condition and was airlifted to a nearby hospital.
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