The 17-year-old accused of killing Hoërskool Overberg pupil Deveney Nel made a brief first appearance in the Caledon Magistrate’s Court in the Western Cape on Monday.
The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) confirmed that the accused was charged with murder and was taken to a place of safety.
The case was adjourned to September 18, for further investigation.
The 16-year-old’s body was found dumped on Wednesday, August 14, behind locked doors of the school’s storeroom.
She had been fatally stabbed.
The accused was arrested two days after police found the body, on the evening of August 16.
Western Cape provincial police commissioner, Lieutenant General Thembisile Patekile welcomed the arrest, saying gender-based violence and femicide is a priority for the South African Police Service (SAPS).
Following the breakthrough, the Western Cape MEC for Police Oversight and Community Safety, Anroux Marais said: “Our confidence in the SAPS investigation under the personal command of Brigadier Leon Hanana has been confirmed.
“We request the community to allow the court case to take its course, so that justice can be done, and anyone with additional information to contact the police urgently.”
In May, President Cyril Ramaphosa, while signing the signing of the National Council on Gender-Based Violence and Femicide Bill, said gender-based violence was a scourge that plagued our country and corroded our social fabric.
IOL News