An Alex man, who sold his employer’s motor vehicle worth R60 000 for R3 000, was recently sentenced by Alexandra Magistrates’ Court to a four-year imprisonment.
The court heard that on the morning of 1 February, the suspect, Phumudzo Ramuntshi (27), was given R1 300 to purchase meat and loaned a VW Caddie by his Sandton-based employer to drive to a shop on Louis Botha Avenue in Orange Grove.
With the suspect not returning by the afternoon, the employer then sent another employee to search for him in Alexandra. The second employee found the unlocked vehicle parked along 3rd Avenue in Alex with the meat inside, but the suspect was missing. After going in search of the suspect, the second employee returned to the same location to find the vehicle missing.
The suspect didn’t return to work and was arrested after the matter was reported to the police by the employer.
In court, the accused said he and a friend drove to several drinking spots in Alex where they consumed beer while looking for a potential buyer for the vehicle. The two men later found a buyer who is said to have negotiated the price down as he was not certain if the vehicle had a tracker system that would inevitably lead to its recovery and his financial loss. The alleged buyer, who also took to the witness stand during court proceedings, denied purchasing of the vehicle.
Since being sold, the VW Caddie has not yet been found.
