MBOMBELA – Edwin Chirgwin (37) was arrested last Wednesday and appeared the following day in the Nelspruit District Court on charges of theft.
One of the various cards in his possession was identified as allegedly belonging to a client of his.
Investigating officer Sgt Michael Horn said a client of the Hair-by Me salon, once situated in Mostert Street, reported that someone had used her Foshini card without her knowledge. The salon has since closed.
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“We picked up that the card was used at Foschini Ilanga Mall. They had bought skincare products and cellphones with the stolen card to the value of about R3 000.”
He said the client watched CCTV footage and identified her hairdresser as one of the men in the store. “She then realised she had been having her hair done at the time her card vanished. We suspect it must have been stolen out of her handbag there.”
Horn said Chirgwin and another man were identified by the client. “The other man will soon be charged and arrested.”
In another incident that took place on February 13, Chirgwin was also implicated in a robbery at a local lodge.
The lodge owner spoke to Lowvelder on condition of anonymity.
“The two men came to our lodge very late. Our rules are if you book in after 21:00, there is a charge. They told us they had been staying at Klipkoppie and that their boss had not arrived. They said they worked for Sappi. So I phoned the security guards at Klipkoppie and they confirmed that they had been staying there.”
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“We made dinner for them, then they booked into room three. The staff at the lodge start preparing breakfast at 05:30 for 06:00.
“The next morning the staff woke me up to tell me they found that the room had been emptied. They broke the gate and their car was gone. They had stolen everything that they could carry out of the room. They also stole our tablet that we kept behind the bar and they took beer and cold drinks out of the fridge.”
The value of the items stolen totalled approximately R9 000.
Horn confirmed that Chirgwin was also charged for the theft at the lodge.
Chirgwin appeared again in the Nelspruit District Court on Thursday for a bail application.
At the time of going to press, the outcome was not yet known.
Anyone with further information regarding this matter can contact Horn on 081-815-8566
