Man jailed for life for crime spree in Inanda, Phoenix

Man jailed for life for crime spree in Inanda, Phoenix

The Ntuzuma Regional Court has handed a lengthy sentence to a man who went on crime spree in the Inanda and Phoenix areas.

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Siyabonga Cele was convicted of robbery, kidnapping, rape and attempted murder committed nearly three years.

 

The court heard the 23-year-old, and his armed accomplices hijacked a metered car driver in Inanda in March 2022, assaulted him and sped off in his vehicle.

 

The gang then came across a woman walking on the road.

 

She was forced into the car, stabbed, raped and robbed of her bank card.

 

While at a petrol garage filling up with the woman's card, a police officer who tried to approach the vehicle which had been reported as stolen came under fire.

 

The gang fled but crashed the car. Only Cele was arrested, and the woman was found bleeding in the backseat.

 

National Prosecuting Authority KZN spokesperson Natasha Ramkisson Kara says a conviction Cele was sentenced after a watertight case and testimonies of the victims.

 

"Cele was sentenced to life imprisonment for rape,15 years imprisonment for robbery with aggravating circumstances, five years for attempted murder and five years for kidnapping. The sentences will run concurrently, resulting in the effective sentence of life imprisonment.

 

"In addition, the court declared him unfit to possess a firearm and ordered that his details are entered into the national register for sex offenders."

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