The Gqeberha woman who allegedly hatched an elaborate plan to kill her ex-husband has launched an appeal against a Magistrate's refusal to grant her bail.
Ethel Noqekwa, 46, who has been charged with the murder of the late doctor Bantu Noqekwa, 56, was refused bail in the New Brighton Magistrate's Court in July.
Dr Bantu Noqekwa was shot execution-style at his surgery in Zwide, in May.
In his judgment during Ethel's bail application, Magistrate Mphuthumi Mpofu said she was considered a flight risk.
He found that there was a chance that she could influence state witnesses, and added that there were no exceptional circumstances that permitted her release on bail.
Ethel's co-accused, Siyabulela Gcayiya, Andile Jongi, and Athule Mtyobile abandoned their bids for bail.
Sergeant Sibulelo Yali testified that Ethel had allegedly promised hitmen that they would be compensated with half a million rand once the job was done.
She is said to have arranged the murder since 2021 via a middleman, who has since turned state witness.
The court heard that her son was let in on the murder plot as he was the executor of the deceased's estate, which meant he would have to release the hitmen's compensation.
The couple's firstborn was allegedly in agreement with his mother.
The appeal hearing was postponed in the Judge's chambers at the city's High Court on Thursday morning.
It is understood that the state and the defence needed to verify certain information before they could proceed.
Ethel will have her day in court, on Monday.
