According to the Hawks spokesperson, Captain Dineo Sekgotodi, the G4S security guards had just collected cash from a local shopping complex in Bethal when they were ambushed. One of the guards sustained a gunshot wound after the suspects opened fire.
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“Thabethe and his accomplice then grabbed the trolley bag and fled the scene. Following a brief pursuit the pair abandoned the trolley bag with the stolen money. The Hawks Serious Organised Crime Investigation launched a probe and four days later Thabethe was arrested. “During further investigation, 30-year-old Mfundo Muzi Mponfompi was apprehended on November 23, 2018. “The pair remained in custody and appeared in court on several occasions after investigators successfully opposed their bail application,” said Sekgotodi.
The Bethal Magistrate’s Court found Thabethe guilty of robbery with aggravating circumstances and of attempted murder.
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This followed a plea bargain. He is to serve an effective ten years’ imprisonment. Meanwhile, the court has postponed Mpondombi’s case to November 19 for legal representation.
The provincial head of the Hawks in Mpumalanga, Major General Zodwa Mokoena, congratulated both the investigation and the prosecution teams for ensuring that the sentence meted out has effectively removed the convicted criminal from society for a long time.
