Three men were on Thursday convicted and sentenced for robbery with aggravating circumstances and attempted murder.
The trio appeared at the Mokopane regional court in Limpopo. Hendric Zukazi, 50, Mbazima Mashavha, 38, and Bernadrd Jala, 52 were sentenced to 18 years in prison for robbery and six years for attempted murder.
Mashudu Malabi-Dzhangi, spokesperson for the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) in Limpopo, said the accused robbed a British American Tobacco delivery vehicle full of cigarettes.
During the robbery, the trio shot and wounded two occupants of the vehicle.
“The truck was delivering cigarettes around the Waterberg district. It stopped at a certain tuck shop in Mahwelereng where the incident took place on 15 October 2020,” said Malabi-Dzhangi.
“The accused were arrested with the help of Hendrick de Vos of Waterberg neighbourhood watch security in collaboration with Mokopane SAPS [SA Police Service]. During trial, the accused persons pleaded not guilty.”
She added that in aggravation of sentence, state advocate Moses Mohale submitted that the offences are prevalent within the jurisdiction and that the complainant has suffered a loss as the cigarettes were never recovered.
“The accused persons proceeded to shoot the witnesses even though there was no resistance from them. One of the witnesses is no longer fit to work due to injuries.
“All the accused persons have previous convictions, and those sentences never deterred them from committing crimes again.”
Mohale argued that there are no substantial or compelling circumstances for the court to deviate from the prescribed minimum sentence.
The NPA welcomed the sentence and said it hopes it will deter other would-be offenders from committing similar crimes.
“We are pleased with the good work done by advocate Mohale and investigating officer Captain Ishmael Mogotlane of Polokwane organised crime,” said Malabi-Dzhangi.
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