Two men who appeared in the Randburg Magistrates’ Court on 2 December were sentenced to 17 years’ imprisonment for the unlawful possession of a firearm, armed robbery and contravention of the immigration act.
The court sentenced 34-year-old Ephraim Mhlanga to 15 years for being found guilty for the unlawful possession of a firearm, and his co-accused 29-year-old Siyabonga Moyo was sentenced to 15 years for armed robbery. They were also given an additional two years for being in the country without proper documentation.
The incident took place on 9 June 2017 at about 9pm when the accused entered a spaza shop in Diepsloot Ext 4 posing as customers. They robbed a victim of her cell phone at gunpoint.
Spokesperson for Diepsloot police, Captain Tinyiko Mathebula said police were on their patrol duties the next day when information came in about a man seen with a firearm. “The police proceeded to the location where the suspect was spotted. Upon arrival, they found two [men] matching the description given by the informant. The suspects were then searched and one was found in possession of unlicensed firearm and the other with four suspected stolen cell phones,” he said.
“While the police were detaining the suspects, another suspect who was being detained for a domestic violence crime, recognised one of the cell phones that the police had recovered as that of his wife which she was robbed of the previous day.” The cell phone was confirmed to be the one stolen by the suspects in Ext 4.
“The domestic violence suspect, who happened to be the victim’s partner, did confirm that the two suspects are the ones that robbed his wife. “This occurrence gave the police a springboard to build a watertight case against the suspects which led to a successful prosecution.”
Station Commander, Brigadier Koena Moichela applauded the investigative efforts of the officers involved that resulted in the sentencing.
Related Article:
