Two hijacking suspects have appeared in court after being nabbed by police, and one of them has been sentenced to 10 years behind bars.
During the early hours of June 19 last year, a truck driver who was asleep in his truck in the Ladysmith CBD was attacked by three gun-wielding men. They gained entry to the truck and assaulted the man. His face was covered with a mask and he was stripped of his possessions.
The truck was then driven off by the hijackers while the man remained inside the vehicle. The truck was eventually abandoned by the suspects after they had stolen diesel from it. The driver managed to get it started and drove himself to Newcastle, where he reported the incident to police.
A case docket was opened and transferred to Ladysmith SAPS, where the case was allocated to the Uthukela Cluster Project Task Team. Warrant Officer van Niekerk was tasked with the investigation.
The vehicle was examined by the Newcastle Forensic Unit and physical evidence was lifted from it. Further investigation into this evidence revealed that one of the suspects had been incarcerated for another offence. He was charged in prison, while a second suspect was arrested in Ladysmith.
The first suspect, Sipheshle Simon Gamede (26), was convicted and sentenced on Monday, March 7, in the Ladysmith Regional Court to 10 years’ imprisonment for robbery with aggravating circumstances. He was also found unfit to possess a firearm.
The second suspect, 23-year-old Siphesihle Khumalo, was granted bail, but failed to attend court. A warrant of arrest was issued for his arrest and over the past weekend, he was arrested in Ladysmith.
He has appeared in the Ladysmith Regional Court, where he was remanded into custody and is set to appear in court again on September 1 and 2.
The investigating officer is confident that he will arrest the third and last suspect soon.
The Uthukela Cluster Project Task Team consists of a dedicated group of seasoned detectives who are tasked with investigating ‘trio crimes’ which are car and truck hijackings, as well as serious business and house robberies.
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