Man sentenced to 10 years
He was found guilty of all three counts which are: possession of a firearm, housebreaking with intent to steal and theft and pointing of a firearm.
Hoedspruit police station commander Lt. Col Musa Shiviti has applauded Det Sgt Happy Mahlangu for showing dedication and ensuring that a criminal is put behind bars.
This comes after Louis Boy Malebe was sentenced to 10 years without an option of a fine for a crime he committed in 2017. According to Hoedspruit police spokesperson, Malebe was arrested after police received a tip-off in March 2018.
“He was arrested in Turkey village in the Sekororo area. According to the information received he broke into a house on one of the farms in Hoedspruit where he stole a TV and laptops in June 2017. After stealing those items he sold one laptop at The Oaks village, and police received information concerning the sold (stolen) laptop,” said Mulaudzi.
She said an investigation was conducted and the laptop was found. “The person who was found in possession of the laptop confirmed that he bought it from Malebe. The lawful owner of the laptop managed to identify the laptop by the serial number,” she said.
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Malebe was traced and he was apprehended by community members at Turkey village, he was caught pointing a firearm at someone with the intention to commit robbery. He was arrested and detained at Maake police station and was charged with possession of an unlicensed firearm and pointing it at someone.
Mulaudzi said the firearm was confiscated. Since Malebe was arrested in 2018, he was denied bail and he remained in custody in Hoedspruit cells until his sentence on Tuesday, August 31 at Lenyenye Magistrate Court.
He was found guilty of all three counts which are: possession of a firearm, housebreaking with intent to steal and theft and pointing of a firearm. He was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment without an option of a fine. He was declared unfit to possess a firearm.
The station commander also said that she believes that community members can still have trust in the police because of police officers like Det Sgt Mahlangu who is dedicated and trustworthy.
