A case of three men arrested in Town Two on Monday 5 August, regarding the foiled cash-in-transit heist, was removed from the court roll by Magistrate Brendale Abrahams at Khayelitsha Magistrates’ Court on Thursday 8 August.
The trio was among the five men arrested in Khayelitsha on Monday. Two are reportedly in hospital. The pair allegedly sustained injuries during a shooting with the police and they faced charges of murder, possession of prohibited firearms, and possession of explosives. Eight other men were shot dead during the incident.
Earlier Advocate Josua Geeff, who represented accused number two, argued that the suspects were supposed to appear in court within 48 hours. He labelled their incarceration as “unconstitutional”.
READ | ‘It was like a movie’: Eight dead and five arrested in a shooting in Town Two, Khayelitsha
Abrahams conceded that the suspects were in custody for over 48 hours.
Provincial police commissioner Lt-Gen Thembisile Patekile said they would review the judgement. He added that police are investigating other cases against the suspects.
“The matter is removed from the court, but that doesn’t mean there is no case. The issue is on the interpretation of the expiry of the 48 hours between the court and what the state or police understand and that will be ventilated in court,” said Patekile.
He insisted there was a strong case against some suspects and linked them to two separate cash-in-transit robberies two weeks ago. “They are out of this matter for now, but they are not out of the cash in transit incidents that occurred at Paarl and Kuils River in the last two weeks. And the investigation is underway and our duty is to prevent them from disappearing,” said Patekile.
