Online Reporter
Dalyn Chigwizura, Sunday News Reporter
THREE men who in March, were accused of hijacking an InDrive driver, gagging him at gunpoint, and locking him in the boot of his car in Pumula South, have been acquitted.
Clifford Desmond Nare (34), Monalisa Mhlanga (21), and Fikile Ncube (26) appeared before Western Commonage regional magistrate, Mrs Sibongile Marondedze, facing armed robbery charges.
The trio was discharged at the close of the State’s case.
Mrs Marondedze ruled that the CCTV footage presented by investigators was unclear, making it impossible to positively identify the suspects, as all three were wearing masks during the incident.
She concluded that the State had failed to establish a clear link between the three and the crime.
“It’s wrong to judge you from things that were not clear. Even the clothes found at the first accused’s place couldn’t be identified in the footage. The link was too far-fetched,” she ruled.
“However, you might have escaped a jail sentence because of a technicality, but be warned that you should desist from crime because next time you won’t escape.”
The prosecutor, Mr Milton Moyo, told the court that the incident occurred on 2 March, when the trio allegedly used a fake InDrive booking to lure the complainant Orchard Nyawo into a trap near Zion of Judah Church in Pumula South.
Court documents read that the three allegedly shoved a gun into Nyawo’s mouth, tied his hands, removed his shoes, and forced him into the boot of his Honda Fit. The gang allegedly threatened to burn him alive if he resisted.
The stolen vehicle was then allegedly used to stage a robbery at DA Garage in Nkulumane 12, where the suspects posed as customers buying fuel before robbing the staff and security of US$60.
The driver’s phone was reportedly left behind.
Detectives traced the number used to make the fake InDrive booking to Monalisa Mhlanga, who had attempted to disguise her identity using a fake Econet address. Police later linked her to a Facebook profile connected to mutual contacts, including a police officer.
A subsequent raid on Ncube’s home yielded a grey tracksuit and black mask resembling those seen on the DA Garage CCTV footage. Nare had allegedly admitted to committing the crime during indications at the scene.
