Six years’ jail for Navy theft

AN SA Navy employee’s son who admitted to stealing automatic weapons‚ hand grenades and ammunition from the Simon’s Town naval base, has been jailed for six years.

Duncan Gouvias‚ 22‚ pleaded guilty in the Wynberg Regional Court to five charges of burglary and contraventions of the Firearms Control Act.

His sentences totalled 43 years but will run concurrently.

Gouvias was arrested last August with two alleged accomplices – Dilian Sewkumar‚ Karabo Ramokgopa‚ 19.

The Hawks’ crimes against state unit made the arrests a week after the burglary and recovered the stolen property.

Sewkumar and Ramokgopa‚ who also have parents in the Navy‚ will appear in court on February 23‚ when they will be asked to plead to the charges against them.

The Western Cape head of the Hawks‚ Major-General Nombuso Khoza‚ praised the investigation team yesterday.

“The moment the 18‚ and accused allegedly targeted a naval base‚ which is a national key point‚ is the moment they cooked their own goose‚” she said.

“It cannot be business as usual when young people with their whole future ahead of them get involved in such senseless acts.”

Bruce Hendricks‚ an attorney representing Gouvias‚ told Times Media last August that he came from a “solid family”.

“This is something that just went wrong‚ something stupid. And they are now facing the full consequences of it‚” he said. — TMG