MOPANI – Two residents of Giyani Township, a 17-year-old youth, and Wisani Solly Ndlovu (23) appeared in the Giyani Regional Court last Friday on thirteen counts of theft and nine of armed robbery.

The incidents to which the accused are linked took place in and around Giyani Town during the years 2000 and 2001.

They were arrested on the 4th of April 2001. Their arrest followed an incident that took place at the Homu Block 14 B village where a well-known businessman, Mr Ndoza Daniel Baloyi, was robbed of a large amount of money at gunpoint before he was shot and killed by a Mozambican resident, Hasani Sam Shirinda (23). Shirinda was arrested together with the two men on April 4, 2001 following the incident. Their case was finalised in the Tzaneen High Court two weeks ago where Shirinida was sentenced to life imprisonment for murder, fifteen years for armed robbery, five years for the possession of an unlicensed firearm and a further one year imprisonment for the illegal possession of ammunition.

The two were found not guilty and were acquitted on all the charges that had been levelled at them. They were, however, not released as they had been linked to a series of serious crimes ranging from theft and armed robbery that took place in the Giyani area three years ago.

Their case was then referred to the Giyani Regional Court where they appeared last Friday. They were not asked to plead and the case was postponed to a later date. They will be in custody until their next court date, as their bail application was unsuccessful.