Cape Town jewellery heist suspects have previous convictions, court hears
Image: Allan Swart/123RF
One of the men who allegedly robbed a Cape Town jewellery store was out on bail for another robbery, while another had an arrest warrant out on him.
Lizo Hangana and Siviwe Makiva appeared briefly on Wednesday in the Wynberg magistrate's court, where it emerged they had previous convictions.
The men were arrested by a detective from Kirstenhof police station on August 19 after they and two others, who are still at large, allegedly walked into a jewellery store at the Blue Route Mall in Tokai and smashed the display cases to steal the contents.
The robbery was captured on CCTV cameras and showed the intruders smashing display cabinets.
The video could not be loaded.
The detective, who was walking through the mall when the robbery happened, confronted the perpetrators and a gunfight ensued.
The Blue Route robbery was the last in a six-week spree of jewellery heists, which began at Diamond Works, opposite the Cape Town International Convention Centre in the city centre. Other targets included the Mount Nelson Hotel, the Cape Quarter Lifestyle Village in Green Point, Kenilworth Centre and Cavendish Square in Claremont.
Hangana, who limped into court during his last appearance, told the court on Wednesday that he was out on R1,000 bail for a business robbery in Bellville.
The case was postponed until October 15 for a bail application. The suspects will remain in custody.