Life plus 80 years for Margate killer
Thabane Ncane was sentenced to life for murder in addition to 80 years for three counts of attempted murder and four counts of armed robbery.
|||Durban - KwaZulu-Natal’s top cop on Friday welcomed the life sentence of a Margate man for murder, attempted murders, and armed robbery.
The man, 28-year-old Thabane Ncane, was sentenced by the Pietermaritzburg High Court to life imprisonment for murder, in addition to 80 years for three counts of attempted murder and four counts of armed robbery. All of the crimes were committed in Margate and the surrounding areas.
“This is the kind of sentence one would expect when a good investigating team is working on a docket. It will serve as a strong warning to other business robbers who are intending to commit such crimes,” said KZN acting provincial commissioner Bhekinkosi Langa.
In Ncane’s trial, it was heard how he terrorised communities in Margate, starting from April 2015.
The first reported case was by a complainant whose business was robbed on April 23 2015 by the suspect and other men.
“At gunpoint, they took airtime, cigarettes, and [a] cellphone and fled the scene,” said police spokesperson Thulani Zwane.
“Ncane was (later) apprehended and linked to the case.”
In another case, on April 24, Ncane was in a taxi that was travelling from Izinqoleni to Margate.
“While the driver was dropping off passengers, the accused demanded cash from the driver. The driver fled the scene and the accused shot at him but missed him,” said Zwane.
While the driver was unharmed, a passenger, 35-year-old Thandeka Khandayo, was shot and killed during the robbery and her handbag was stolen.
With both cases reported to the police, the arrest and conviction could be made.
African News Agency