SASOLBURG – The High Court has thrown the book at three men, sentencing them to a combined 47 years behind bars after a botched supermarket robbery.
Sibusiso Blessing Mbele (38), Jeremiah Tshabela (32), and Aron Mandla Radebe (45) will spend nearly four decades in prison after their wild crime spree ended in a chaotic shootout with police on December 5, 2019.
The incident in Sasolburg saw them charged with murder, attempted murder, and robbery.
According to Fezile Dabi District police spokesperson Sergeant Josephine Rani, the chaos erupted when Sasolburg police responded to an alarm triggered at a local supermarket.
With backup on the way, the confrontation turned into a hail of bullets when a shooting ensued between the suspects and police.
“In the heat of the moment, one of the suspects was shot dead, while a brave police sergeant was left injured,” said Rani.
“Two of the robbers were swiftly apprehended, but the third suspect [Radebe] made a dramatic escape in a white Mercedes-Benz, only to abandon the car and vanish into the night,” she explained.
In a shocking twist, Radebe walked into the Vanderbijlpark police station claiming his Mercedes had been hijacked and that he was dumped near Orange Farm.
However, his calculated plan dismally backfired when the Vanderbijlpark officer quickly connected the dots on circulating information regarding the robbery.
The Sergeant contacted Sasolburg police and soon enough, Radebe was arrested.
Rani said their Investigating officer Sergeant Chrissie Van der Linde left no stone unturned to make sure that justice was served and all three accused were positively linked to the crime and were convicted.
