Former Hard Livings gang kingpin Rashied Staggie can no longer afford to fight legal battles to get out of prison, his wife says.
The couple has run out of money, but even if it was available, Rashieda Staggie believes that trying to find avenues to secure her husband's release would be a waste of time.
She said she was sure "authorities" in the justice system wanted to keep her husband behind bars.
She refused to elaborate.
Mrs Staggie spoke to the Cape Argus on the steps of the Cape High Court building on Wednesday just moments after her husband lost his appeal against his conviction and sentence for the theft of arms and ammunition from the Faure police station.
Six of his co-accused successfully appealed against their sentences.
But Staggie has to remain behind bars for the duration of his 13-year sentence.
Staggie was found guilty of the theft of 20 R5-rifles, 12 R-1 rifles, 18 shotguns, eight pistols and almost 5 000 rounds of ammunition.
The arms were apparently to be used to arm gangsters against the anti-drug group, Pagad.
The Community Outreach Forum - formed by gangs across the Cape Flats after the 1996 public lynching of Staggie's brother Rashaad - was also believed to have wanted to use the arms to protect itself against Pagad.
In May 2004, the Bellville Regional Court sentenced Staggie to serve 13 years behind bars, with co-accused Roland Olince and Daniel O'Connell.
Ricardo Adams was sentenced to 12 years, and Abdul Gaffoor Ganief and Graham Greentree to 10 years each.
Roderick Collins, a former police official, was sentenced to 15 years behind bars.
But they appealed their convictions and sentences before two judges in the Cape High Court.
Acting Justice Sven Olivier and Justice Willem Louw confirmed Staggie's sentence on Wednesday, but ordered that the sentences of his six co-accused be reduced.
The judges found that the magistrate had given serious consideration to the submission that a shorter sentence would allow them to rehabilitate themselves in prison.
Also, the magistrate was also fully aware of the length of the trial.
The judges found, however, that the Regional Court should have placed more weight on the length of time the men had spent awaiting trial in prison.
Staggie had spent less time awaiting trial behind bars than the others.
The judges found that Staggie's sentence should remain unchanged, but that there were sufficient grounds to interfere with the sentences of the others.
Ganief and Adams's sentences were reduced to an effective nine years, Olince's to 11 years, Greentree's to eight years, O'Connell's to nine years, and Collins's to 12 years.
Speaking after the ruling, Rashieda Staggie said her husband, who has served four years of his sentence in Helderstroom Prison in Caledon, had expected good news.
"Every prisoner longs to go home and it's going to be difficult for him. He expected good news on Thursday," she said as she stood on the steps to the court building.
She and the couple's children visited Staggie frequently.
He was well, but he missed home, she said.