cape{town}etc by Jan-Hendrik De Villiers
Residents of Khayelitsha and crime activists have demanded answers from Western Cape police commissioner Thembisile Patekile after police failed to bring five arrested suspects accused of being cash-in-transit robbers to court, within the ‘legally stipulated’ 48-hour period.
The suspects were arrested following a shootout between police and the alleged robbers on Monday evening, Cape {town} Etc reports.
Eight people were shot dead by police after they were suspected of ‘being about to carry out’ a cash-in-transit robbery.
Police were trying to arrest them in Bekelentloko Street, Town Two and it is believed that the robbers’ target was a Fidelity van, as reported by News24.
In total, 14 firearms and four vehicles were confiscated during the shootout.
Three of the five arrested suspects made their first appearance in the Khayelitsha Magistrate’s Court on Thursday.
The three suspects, namely Cassiem Isaac Feni, Tebogo Maluke and Avuyile Mjongwana were charged with murder, illegal possession of ammunition, illegal possession of firearms and possession of explosives.
The remaining two suspects are currently recovering in hospital from injuries ‘sustained in the shootout’.
Feni’s lawyer told the court that his client appeared unlawfully before the court, since Feni ‘did not appear’ within the legally stipulated 48-hour period after being arrested.
As a result, Magistrate Brendale Abrahams struck the matter from the roll, much to the ‘shock’ of police and the Khayelitsha community.
The Hawks in the Western Cape province have since taken over the investigation, with Zinzi Hani, Hawks spokesperson confirming that the matter had been struck off the court roll.
Since then, Anroux Marais, Western Cape MEC of police, oversight and community safety, has instructed the department’s Court Watching Brief Unit to ‘monitor the court case’.
‘Following the commendable actions by the South African Police Service and its partners, the criminal justice system must now swiftly take its course,’ said Marais.
‘The department’s Court Watching Brief Unit will help monitor the case to ensure that justice is done and that nothing falls between the cracks,’ Marais added.