By Teboho Moloi
BLOEMFONTEIN – The murder and defeating-the-ends-of-justice case against Pieter Motsamai De Boer (34) of Kloofeind farm, outside Bloemfontein, was postponed on Wednesday, 11 February, for a formal bail application.
Motsamai made his first appearance in the Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court following the discovery of his 27-year old girlfriend’s body, buried in a shallow grave along the N8 between Bloemfontein and Petrusburg on Monday, 9 February 2026.
Police said the suspect had earlier reported the woman missing in January, allegedly providing false information at Parkweg Police Station that she had left the farm to visit an aunt in Pieter Swart, Bloemspruit.
Free State police spokesperson Lt-Col Thabo Covane said an intelligence-driven operation led to the discovery of the body.
“The shallow grave was pointed out by the 34-year old suspect. The decomposed remains of the victim, identified as his girlfriend, were exhumed on Monday,” Covane said.
Crime scene experts were at the site from early Monday morning, and the suspect was arrested immediately.
Motsamai will return to court on Thursday, 19 February 2026, for his bail application.