THE DEFENCE for John-Ross Crossbery Henderson, 38, will approach the Supreme Court of Appeal after an appeal in the Northern Cape High Court to permit his release on bail was dismissed this week.

Henderson is charged with the murder of Jayson Afrique and the attempted murder of Afrique's wife, Micayla, after several bullets were fired at their vehicle as they drove into the driveway of their house in New Park on July 31, 2024.

He has been in custody since his arrest on September 20, 2024, as two prior bail applications in the Kimberley Magistrate’s Court were denied.

Henderson submitted that he had to take care of his four minor children, who were financially dependent on him, while he was unable to operate his business or compensate 134 employees from inside a prison cell.

He claimed that his cellphone was missing prior to the shooting and reported it to the Kimberley police station on August 1, 2024.

Henderson explained that the crime scene was not cordoned off upon his arrival on the scene, after he received an alert about the incident while conducting security patrols in the area.

He was unable to recall the exact time that he arrived at the crime scene.

Judgment findings

In her judgment on Wednesday, Acting Judge Tyuthuza stated that Henderson’s case was distinguishable from that of murder accused Clive Ferris, who was released on R10,000 bail on February 7.

“Henderson is 38 years old and enjoys good health. The surviving complainant fears for her life and believes that Henderson is the only person who has access to the murder weapon,” said Tyuthuza.

She found it concerning that Henderson knew the whereabouts of the surviving complainant, whom he stated had sold the family business and relocated to Cape Town.

“Although he undertook not to communicate or interfere with any witnesses or the investigation, he knows the identities and addresses of State witnesses. He was employed as a police officer for nine years and has contacts within the SAPS.”

She indicated that this was in comparison to Ferris, who was a 67-year-old pensioner.

“Ferris was injured after being summoned to the scene by his daughter, who was hysterical and in ‘mortal danger’.”

Tyuthuza added that the murder weapon used in the New Park shooting had not been traced yet, while Ferris’s firearm had been confiscated.

She believed there was a likelihood that the investigation into Afrique’s murder could be interfered with if the accused was released from custody.

“The Henderson family is well-known and the father of the accused is involved in the legal fraternity. Henderson (senior) took it upon himself to get to the bottom of the investigation when he took photographs of the motor vehicle at the panel beaters and hired a private investigator to examine the bakkie. The investigation is still ongoing and a suspect is still at large. ”

She added that JR Henderson was also implicated in a business robbery involving a firearm.

“The case was removed from the court roll and is awaiting a decision from the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP) following the death of the presiding magistrate.”

Tyuthuza stated that the supposed discrepancies in the sequence of events were not relevant to the bail application and would be argued during the trial.

She pointed out that both the State and the SAPS Local Criminal Record Centre agreed that there were no dash cameras inside the bakkie in which Afrique was shot.

“The State denied that shots were fired from inside the cabin.

“The investigating officer refuted that Henderson’s cellphone was picked up by a police official at the crime scene,” Tyuthuza added.

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Henderson takes bail battle to SCA