A 41-year-old woman has been charged with murder after she allegedly confessed to hiring a hitman to kill her husband.

Nonhlanhla Matiwane, from Kwa-Thema in Ekurhuleni, appeared briefly at the Springs magistrate's court yesterday to face a murder rap along with four alleged hitmen who killed her husband Sibusiso Mthombothi, 42.

Police said the men were promised about R80,000 after Mthombothi's life insurance policy payout.

Matiwane, an unemployed mother, was arrested on Monday by police at a house in Tsakane seven months after Mthombothi was shot dead near Ntokozweni School in Kwa-Thema.

Magistrate Khensani Moila postponed Matiwane's bail application until today to allow her to get a Legal Aid lawyer.

Police spokesperson Media Khoza said Matiwane had confessed to hiring a hitman to kill her husband on March 6.

Khoza said Matiwane admitted to knowing only one of the four men accused of killing her husband.

The four men were arrested at the Gosforth toll plaza on the N17 near Germiston on the day Mthombothi was killed. Matiwane joined the four alleged hitmen in the dock yesterday.

Khoza said police received a tip-off about three weeks ago from a man who alleged that he was first approached by Matiwane to plot a hit on Mthombothi but that he declined.

"The man felt guilty and told the police who looked into the wife [Matiwane].

"After weeks of being traced and questioned by police the woman succumbed to the pressure yesterday and confessed to the premeditated murder of her husband," said Khoza.

Khoza said Matiwane was charged with a schedule six offence after investigations also revealed that two of her co-accused hitmen had previous murder cases and other violent crimes.

"She admitted that she hired one of the men who later organised the three others who assisted him to execute the shooting," said Khoza.

"They were promised about R80,000 should his life insurance policy pay out."

Mthombothi's uncle Solly, who was in court, told Sowetan the family was in shock at Matiwane's arrest and allegations that she was the mastermind behind her husband's death.

The family said Mthombothi worked as a paramedic but had resigned.

Solly said the couple was living apart at the time of Mthombothi's killing.

"We are beyond shocked because this person looked at us and said nothing, cried with us and helped us bury him when she knew she had killed him," Solly said.

Solly said the couple had two children together but Matiwane had three other kids. He said the couple had constant fights but they would resolve things from time to time.

Mthombothi's aunt Prudence said the deceased once told his family that there were people following him.

"Sometime last year Nonhlanhla called him in the middle of the night asking him to [meet] her at the clinic alleging that one of their two children was sick. When he got there she was not there.

"Instead, a group of men tried to attack him but he managed to escape," she said.