News / Regional
Five Beitbridge robbers - magumagumaz - get 7 years
03 Apr 2012 at 05:18hrs | Views
FIVE notorious armed robbers, who were operating along the Limpopo river targeting illegal immigrants going to either South Africa or entering Zimbabwe, have been jailed effective seven years each.
Nyasha Mupariya (18), Taurai Costa Mutasa (33), Daniel Muzhazha (20), Simon Ndlovu (17) and John Sithole (18) all of no fixed abode had denied charges agaisnt them when their trial opened at Beitbridge magistrates court.
But magistrate Mrs Auxillia Chiumburu convicted them after the State proved its cases beyond reasonable doubt.
Mrs Chiumburu sentenced the five to a total of nine years each in jail but suspended two years on condition that they do not committ a similar officence within the period of five years.
The court heard that the five were operating an armed robbery syndicate near the spillway some three kilomitres to the eastern side of the Old Limpopo Bridge.
On November 30 last year, the gang spotted their victim, Bhekimpilo Nyathi who was on his way to cross into South Africa through an illegal entry point near the spillway.
They ambushed him with knives.
They ordered him to strip his clothes and surrender all the items he had been carrying including money.
The gang took away his cell phone, clothes and R400 and disappeared in different directions into the bush.
Nyathi later went back to the border town where he made a report to the police.
Two days later the gang pounced on another victim in the same manner and took with them clothes, two cell phones and R200.
A report was also made to the police leading to the arrest of Mupariya, Muzhazha and Sithole on December 8 following a tip off from the community.
Police also recovered a knife allegedly used in the robbery from Mupariya.
Upon further interrogations the trio implicated Mutasa and Ndlovu who were arrested in the border town the following day.
Another knife was recovered from Ndlovu. The complainants positively identified them.
Nothing was recovered.
Nyasha Mupariya (18), Taurai Costa Mutasa (33), Daniel Muzhazha (20), Simon Ndlovu (17) and John Sithole (18) all of no fixed abode had denied charges agaisnt them when their trial opened at Beitbridge magistrates court.
But magistrate Mrs Auxillia Chiumburu convicted them after the State proved its cases beyond reasonable doubt.
Mrs Chiumburu sentenced the five to a total of nine years each in jail but suspended two years on condition that they do not committ a similar officence within the period of five years.
The court heard that the five were operating an armed robbery syndicate near the spillway some three kilomitres to the eastern side of the Old Limpopo Bridge.
On November 30 last year, the gang spotted their victim, Bhekimpilo Nyathi who was on his way to cross into South Africa through an illegal entry point near the spillway.
They ambushed him with knives.
They ordered him to strip his clothes and surrender all the items he had been carrying including money.
The gang took away his cell phone, clothes and R400 and disappeared in different directions into the bush.
Nyathi later went back to the border town where he made a report to the police.
Two days later the gang pounced on another victim in the same manner and took with them clothes, two cell phones and R200.
A report was also made to the police leading to the arrest of Mupariya, Muzhazha and Sithole on December 8 following a tip off from the community.
Police also recovered a knife allegedly used in the robbery from Mupariya.
Upon further interrogations the trio implicated Mutasa and Ndlovu who were arrested in the border town the following day.
Another knife was recovered from Ndlovu. The complainants positively identified them.
Nothing was recovered.
Source - TH
