Kimberley - Five of the suspects accused of participating in a cash-in-transit robbery in Beaconsfield last Monday, will be spending another week in custody after the State was granted an additional postponement in the Kimberley Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday.
The suspects, whom the court has ruled cannot be identified at this stage, were arrested shortly after an incident at K&B Supermarket, where a group of armed robbers held a G4S security guard at gunpoint before making off with an estimated R4.5 million in cash as well as a firearm.
After giving chase, police were able to apprehend the five suspects and managed to recover a number of items, including two vehicles, cash and firearms.
However, with additional suspects still at large and the five in custody yet to be positively identified, the State on Wednesday asked for the formal bail application to be postponed for a second time while it prepares its case.
Commander of the Kimberley Organised Crime Unit, Colonel Solomon Mogatwe, who is the investigating officer in the case, told the court on Wednesday that the investigation still needed some time before it would be ready for a formal bail application.
An identity parade, along with the results of DNA and ballistic tests, are among the outstanding evidence. Mogatwe was, however, confident that the bail application for the five accused would be able to take place within the next two weeks.
“I went to the Kimberley police station last week to check on their facilities for the ID parade,” the colonel testified on Wednesday. “It was not available and there were also not enough personnel to assist with the parade. There are five accused and this means that we require around 25 people in order to conduct the line-ups.
“I also went to the prison but there was no one-way mirror. Witnesses were not prepared for this and preferred to conduct the identification process from behind a mirror.
“When I checked the records of the accused, I also realised that these indicated that some of them have other pending charges against them in the Free State. Due to time constraints, I have been unable to look into these.
“We also need to verify if any of the accused travel outside South Africa and we are also still in the process of trying to track down the other suspects involved in the incident.
“I am confident that by Monday or Tuesday (December 7 or 8) we will be ready for the formal bail application.”
During cross-examination, the legal representative of the five accused, Advocate Maru Maphalla, pointed out that the suspects had already been in custody since the incident on November 16.
He went on to accuse the State of using delaying tactics and said that Mogatwe was lying about checking on the availability of ID parade facilities at correctional services.
“I have a suspicion that the colonel is lying and that he was never there (at the prison),” Maphalla told the court, claiming that he had proof to substantiate this statement.
The defence also claimed that an officer, who is part of the investigation, had taken photographs of the accused with his mobile phone, pointing out that this was a gross violation of protocol, especially since the identities of the suspects were being kept from the public.
“I was not aware of these photos until this morning,” said the colonel. “I have still not seen them but the officer has confirmed taking them.”
Mogatwe also stated that the majority of the members of the investigating team are currently involved in a workshop in Upington, which was scheduled prior to the incident.
“I agree with Mr Maphalla that bail applications must be prioritised,” Magistrate Ben September said. “I am disturbed by the fact that there is this postponement and I would not be doing my job without saying that.
“The IO was left alone here to work while his team is at a workshop. They should have given priority to this bail application.
“At the same time, it would be reckless of the court to just simply go on today without having enough evidence to make an informed decision.”
DFA
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