Mookgophong robber sentenced to 35 years

Convicted robber Trevor Lesego Mokoape (29) has been sentenced to 35 years imprisonment on four charges of robbery.

The man was arrested in May 2017, in connection with robberies which were carried out in Mookgophong, Modimolle and Bela-Bela.

The sentence was handed down by the Mokopane Regional Court on Tuesday, 20 August.

Mookgophong police spokesperson, Warrant George Ledwaba, commended the investigating officer, Captain Nape Modiba who worked effortlessly on the case that ultimately ended with a conviction.

On a national landscape, according the statistics released by the South African government last year for the 2017/18 period, there was a 12.1% decrease in crimes relating to common robbery in
the Limpopo province.

However, cases of robbery with aggravating circumstances increased by 4.5% between the period 2016/17 and 2017/18.

The crime stats further showed that the most frequently used weapons in aggravated robberies are firearms, which contribute to 59.5% of the used weapons.

Hot on the heels of the use of firearms in these type of crimes is the use of knifes, which stood at 28.6%, at the time that the statistics were released.

Among other weapons which were mostly used in robberies were sharp instruments, screwdrivers and pangas.

— The BEAT