THE five men arrested in connection with the robbery of a jewellery store at Gateway Theatre of Shopping are set to enter into a plea agreement after abandoning their bail attempts.

On Monday (May 18) three of the five accused made a brief appearance in the Durban Magistrate’s Court where it was decided their lawyer would submit a draft plea for the State to consider.

What the plea would entail is as yet unclear and will be reviewed by the State.

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Sfundo Mthethwa, Khetha Ngcobo, Nkululeko Mbatha, Vukani Dlamini and Anele Radebe have been in custody at Westville prison since their arrest last month, 48 hours after robbing Premji’s Jewellers store at the busy mall.

On Monday, it was revealed that two of the accused, Mthethwa and Mbatha, who were not present at court, had been out on parole for another case of house robbery and murder.

All five men face charges of business robbery and attempted murder.

State prosecutor Sureka Marimuthu revealed investigations into the robbery were almost complete with police from the Provincial Murder and Robbery Unit set to interview two of the security guards shot and injured in the incident.

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One of the officers remains in ICU while the other is still recovering. 

The matter has been postponed until Monday, June 1 where a plea agreement is set to be heard.