Long jail terms for platinum heist plan
SIX men who masterminded a brazen liquid platinum heist attempt two years ago received a combined 140 years in jail when they appeared in the Port Elizabeth High Court yesterday.
The National Prosecuting Authority has welcomed the sentence.
Unathi Wana, 36, of Kwazakhele, will serve an effective 30 years while Mlungisi Ntsume, 39, of New Brighton, will serve 33 years.
Madoda Nube, 39, of New Brighton, was jailed for 23 years while Luyanda Njokweni, 39, of New Brighton, and Vukile Ngcangisa, 52, of Motherwell, were each jailed for 25 years.
Wana and Ntsume received stiffer sentences as the court found they had carried automatic and semi-automatic rifles during the heist. Their co-accused, Xolani Nanto, 40, will only serve four years behind bars since the court found he had taken steps to dissociate himself from the crime by telling a police officer a heist would be committed in Deal Party on November 8 2011.
The group was convicted two weeks ago on a range of serious offences including murder, attempted murder, robbery with aggravating circumstance and illegal possession of firearms.
Yesterday, the public gallery was filled to capacity by relatives of the men as well as heavily armed police officers who kept order during the proceedings.
Shortly after Judge Glen Goosen handed down the sentences, the men were seen joking and passing personal belongings to loved ones
before kissing them goodbye.
The attempted heist had ended in a shootout between police and the large armed gang that had consisted of 13 people.
Six people – five suspected hijackers and an innocent bystander – were killed in the pandemonium and three were seriously injured.
Four of the 13 robbers managed to escape.
The group had targeted an armoured vehicle carrying liquid platinum, which is extremely valuable and used to make catalytic converters.
Having been tipped off about the heist, the provincial national intervention unit had replaced the usual drivers of the truck with police officers. Armed police officers also lay in wait in the back of the truck.
Goosen found the men had set out to corrupt an employee of a platinum company to commit the crime.
Although three of them were not actually present at the heist, they were nevertheless key players since they had attempted to corrupt an employee.
“They knew firearms would be used and lives would be lost,” he said.
Tsepo Ndwalaza, NPA regional communication manager, welcomed the sentences.
“This has been a very trying time for the team of prosecutors and investigators,” Ndwalaza said.
“The hard work between state law enforcement agencies has once again proven working together can yield good results.”
The men will serve their sentences at St Albans.