Durban — Two women implicated in planning a robbery were denied bail in the Pinetown Magistrate’s Court on Monday.
KwaDabeka resident Wiseman Sibiya was robbed at gunpoint in his home of his Fossil watch, a cellphone and his FNB bank card.
Zamokuhle Ndlovu and Lindiwe “Malindi” Sithole, from KwaDabeka, had allegedly conspired with others to rob Sibiya of his severance pay. The State was concerned about Sibiya’s safety as the robbery was apparently planned by his neighbour and her friend.
Before the pair’s first appearance in court a recording of a telephone conversation between two women and a man was being shared on social media. In the recording, the women, believed to be Ndlovu, 21, and Sithole, 41, tell the man that the would-be victim, who had money, was known to him and he should wear a mask and hat.
During the bail application, the State implored the court not to grant bail because Sibiya and his brother – a witness in the matter – had relocated from their home fearing for their lives. The State also stressed that the men who robbed Sibiya were still at large.
“On the last occasion Sibiya was sitting outside Court F when he heard two men talking to others, asking where the victim was – calling him by his name,” said the prosecutor.
The State says three firearms were used in the crime. “These guns are still not recovered. The community is fed up with crime and relies on the courts to send a strong message. There will be public disorder if the court grants bail. The community could take the law into their own hands.”
The State was also in possession of a confession from Sithole, detailing how the robbery was planned.
“The accused might evade trial.”
Investigating officer, Sergeant Mondli Sithole, testified the recording led police to the women. Sibiya recognised the women’s voices; when Sithole was made to listen to the recording, she admitted that it was indeed her voice.
Magistrate Wendalynn Robinson ruled the women had failed to prove it was in the interests of justice that they be granted bail.
Daily News