Nomonde Zondi|Published
The Pinetown District Court sentenced them to 35 years each, four convicted of a series of crimes of robbing teachers armed in three schools.
The criminals, Mthobisi Wonder Shozi, Lebo Nhlakanipho Magwaza, Brian Tyron Charles and Sbonelo Sxolile Mkhulisi were sentenced for the crimes they committed in February 2023.
It turns out that they first raided the Nazareth Primary school in Pinetown on February 2, moved on to Damini Primary in Ntshongweni on February 8, and then raided the Tholukwazi Secondary school in Molweni for the last time on February 20.
It is said that they came to these schools and pretended to be sponsors. It is said that they suggested that they would donate sports equipment, which is the method they used to enter the schools. It is said that when they were inside, they turned around and started their struggle to rob.
Before Magistrate Muntukayise Khumalo handed down the sentence, he said that they failed to put reasonable points, which could make him deviate from the sentence set aside for those who have committed crimes like these.
During the hearing of the release of the sentence, the lawyer who represented the four defendants, who called himself Mr. Mkhize, urged the court to give them a lesser sentence, saying that his clients are ready to go to rehabilitation.
He also reminded the court that the defendants have been in custody since they were arrested in 2023 and committed the crimes when they were young.
State Prosecutor Mr. Rowan Souls objected to these points, saying that they are not weighty enough to lead the court to change the age set for similar cases.
“Teachers are important to society. When you send your child to school, you expect them to be safe. You don’t expect people like the defendants to abuse children and rob teachers,” said Souls.
He also emphasized that the defendants planned their robbery actions well, they did them successfully, using the same method.
Releasing the sentence, Khumalo said the courts should not deviate from the sentence set for reasons that cannot be heard. He mentioned that the defendants never showed remorse during the trial and forced the witnesses to relive the pain they felt when they were attacked.
Although the defendants are aged between 23 and 25, Khumalo said they do not deserve to be rehabilitated.
“We must remember that what they did was planned in broad daylight. The teachers were robbed, beaten and robbed of their belongings,” said Khumalo.
He said that when the Constitution guarantees the right to safety for everyone, teachers find themselves living in fear of being robbed and kidnapped from schools where they teach public children.
He strongly criticized the violence used by the defendants when they committed the crimes, and asked the question why men continue to beat the victims even after they have robbed them of their belongings.
He said they noticed that the principal of Tholulwazi Secondary, Mr. Nhlanhla Mchunu, was seriously injured after he was hit three times in the head with a gun, which led to him bleeding profusely.
In addition to the sentence, Khumalo also decided that the four defendants should no longer carry firearms.
The court also decided that Shozi was not given 35 years, which he served concurrently with a ten-year sentence to be handed down by another court in September 2024.