Africa-Press – South-Africa. Eight men were each handed 120 years’ imprisonment for cash-in-transit related crimes in KwaZulu-Natal, the Hawks said on Thursday.
The men were sentenced in the Pietermaritzburg High Court on Wednesday after they were arrested on 1 September 2017, Hawks spokesperson Warrant Officer Bonnie Nxumalo said.
The eight men who were sentenced are Xolani Mpisane, 40, Njabulo Ngcobo, 48, Mzwenduna Blose, 41, Sabelo Buthelezi, 39, Thuthukani Dlamini, 35, Msizi Mkhize, 45, Sibusiso Ngwenya, 33, and Sipho Nyosi, 38.
Nxumalo said a team of the Port Shepstone based Hawks’ Serious Organised Crime Investigation, Special Task Force and Crime Intelligence Gathering, received intelligence about a group of men who were going to attack a cash van travelling from Kokstad to Harding in 2017.
Leading up to the arrests, three vehicles were spotted by police on the N2 highway near the Stafford Post, Nxumalo said.
“The police instructed the vehicles to stop, but the occupants fired shots towards the police. Police returned fire, fatally wounding three men and injuring one. Five assault rifles, two pistols and explosives were recovered,” she said.
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An investigation revealed that one of their vehicles were hijacked from the owners in Cato Manor, in April 2017 and another in Alexander in June 2017.
Nxumalo said the eight were arrested at the scene and charged with conspiracy to commit a cash-in-transit robbery, murder, illegal possession of firearms and ammunition, possession of explosives as well as hijacking of two vehicles.
They were all convicted and sentenced for the death of their three co-accused, hijacking, illegal possession of illegal firearms, illegal possession of explosives, illegal possession of ammunition and conspiracy to commit robbery.
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