Johannesburg - In a landmark case, a gang of robbers who terrorised communities across three provinces have been sentenced in the South Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg to a collective 843 years on 68 counts.
For the first time, the State was able to convict five of the six robbers on racketeering charges after Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions, advocate Geo Wassermann, and advocate Cobus Ehlers, argued that they were members of an associated robbery gang.
To do this, the prosecutors had to convince the court that the accused took part in an enterprise that involved serious crime.
Judge AJ Mncube sentenced Vusimuzi Jomo Mazibuko, 43, and Xolani Comfort Mkhwanazi, 32, each to life in prison.
Shaun Khumalo, 25, was sentenced to 15 years in prison, while Vusi David Sibanyoni, 41, and Sticks Nkuna Bhova, 46, were given an effective 20 years each. Calvin Congo Mabunda, 40, was sentenced to 25 years in prison.
Only Khumalo was found not guilty of racketeering.
The gang were also convicted on charges of kidnapping, robbery, murder, fraud, corruption, conspiracy and possession of firearms and ammunition.
The investigation and trial, which began in 2019, focused on the gang’s seven-year crime spree that started in 2011 when they kidnapped a Post Office employee in Mabeskraal, in the North West. Their plan was to rob the Post Office but their attempt failed when they discovered the employee did not have the keys to the safe.
On August 13, 2013, Mkhwanazi and Mazibuko followed Johnny Meyer and his wife from an Absa bank branch in Randfontein to their home.
There they robbed the couple at their gate, and in the scuffle Mkhwanazi shot Meyer in the head. He died shortly after. The gang’s modus operandi, the court heard, involved associated robberies in which they would identify customers withdrawing large amounts of cash in banks. They would follow them and rob them at their homes or in an isolated area. They used this method in Booysens and Klip River.
In the Booysens robbery, the gang used information obtained by Khumalo, who was a bank teller, to identify their victim.
From 2017 to 2018, the gang operated in Giyani, in Limpopo.
There they took advantage of lax security and pensioners who were in the habit of withdrawing large sums of cash to pay for the construction of their retirement homes.
It was there the gang proved particularly ruthless. During some of their crimes they would follow their victims from the bank and then break down the front door of their homes and rob them in their houses.
This crime spree in Giyani resulted in the police forming a special task team to catch the gang.
The gang’s luck ran out, however, when they robbed a Mopani Super Spar employee on January 6, 2018. During the robbery a shot was fired, which alerted police patrolling nearby.
The robbers fled and a car chase and shootout ensued. Police arrested two of the robbers - Mkhwanazi and Mabunda. The next day, police spotted the other car involved in the robbery and arrested Bhova, after a shootout.
The criminals, the court heard, were linked through fingerprints, facial recognition, and expert evidence from not only the police but also bank security officials.
An expert in associated robberies, Maureen Coetzee, analysed video footage taken at the banks and identified the suspects and their roles in the crime. Her evidence given in court would establish that a syndicate existed and she explained how it functioned.
In a statement, the National Prosecuting Authority extended its gratitude to the complainants who came forward to testify, as well as investigating officers Tshediso Simon Nyofane and Kazamula Robert Chabalala for their dedicated efforts in investigating the crimes.