It has taken three years for a man accused of murdering his mother and then placing her body into a wheelie bin to finally get a trial date.
A calm-looking Shakoor Roberts, 24, appeared in the Mitchells Plain Regional Court on Thursday, where he was told his murder trial would start in August.
Roberts, who is in custody at Pollsmoor Prison, had a string of lawyers resulting in several postponements.
There were also times when he was left at prison and not brought to court.
Magistrate Walter Golding informed Roberts that his trial date was set for 7 August, when he is also expected to enter a plea for the murder of his mother, Gafsa Roberts, 61.
Henry Arends, the chairperson of the Mitchells Plain Crisis Forum, said this was a small victory for Gafsa’s family.
“The family has waited for years and now they can put part of that pain and anger behind them. We will be here every step of the way to witness justice being served.”
Gafsa’s daughter, Rushana Adams, added: “Alhamdulillah, shukr to the almighty Allah. It’s a start for justice for my mother and I can’t stop crying.”
Gafsa’s badly decomposed body was discovered by a neighbour inside a wheelie bin outside her home in Winterhoek Street, Tafelsig, in March 2015, after she went missing.
It’s believed Gafsa was beaten to death, but a cause of death was never established.
Roberts lived alone with his sickly mother and relatives claim he is a satanist.
Roberts is a diagnosed schizophrenic.