Malalane - An Mpumalanga man accused of killing a police constable was jailed on Tuesday for six months for another crime.
Mpendulo Makamo, 25, was sentenced with the option to pay a fine of R3 000 when he appeared in the Tonga Magistrate's Court, a Sapa correspondent reported.
He was found guilty of attacking a neighbour, Mandla Ngomane, in Langeloop village south of Malalane around 10pm on July 26, 2008.
The court heard Ngomane earlier had drinks with Makamo at a tavern in the area and that Makamo waited for him along a road and robbed him of R1200.
Magistrate Edgar Moletsane said Makamo was known for using his younger sister's social grant money to buy liquor.
“You buy alcohol with your money and tried to make a quick buck from your neighbour,” Moletsane said.
The magistrate said he was concerned that Makamo had previously stated he was 21 when he was in fact 25.
Makamo is one of eight people implicated in the murder of Constable Sfiso Mtsweni, 27, who was shot dead at his home in Langeloop on November 8, 2013.
His co-accused are Sindi Mvubu, 23, Teresa Mabaso, 32, Victor Sibiya, 23, Wiseman Ngomane, 30, Soneni Mhlabane, 27, Absalom Nkosi, 25, and Innocent Lucas Ngomane, 30.
All of them live in Langeloop. None of them have been asked to plead to charges of murder and conspiracy to commit murder.
Only Mabaso is out on R2 000 bail. Mvubu's bail application was denied in the same court last Friday.
The other six have asked to be kept in custody for their own safety. They are all scheduled to appear in the same court on March 26 while police investigate the case.
Sapa