Durban — A heavily pregnant 40-year-old woman believed to be the mastermind behind the violent robbery of a man lured with the prospect of a threesome has been sentenced to 18 years behind bars.
The hit man and honey trap in the matter were sentenced to 15 years by Magistrate E La Grange in the Ntuzuma Magistrate’s Court.
“While the court accepts that two of the accused have been in custody for two years and three months pending the finalisation of the trial, accused one has been out on bail and has had a joyful life remarrying and getting pregnant while the others were remanded in custody,” the magistrate said in her sentence.
The hit man, Syed Arif Kazmi, 34, “honey trap” Rekha Singh, 29, and the mastermind, Gwendolene Leonara Mackenzie, 40, were sentenced on Friday.
Among items stolen from the victim were his car, phone, his gun as well as ammunition.
The vehicle and cellphone were never recovered.
The three had pleaded guilty to the crime carried out in 2019 in Newlands West.
They were charged with robbery with aggravating circumstances. The victim was hit with a hammer on the head and arm by Kazmi and Singh. Mackenzie threw glass plates and other objects at him.
“The court is satisfied that not only was the aim extortion, but they also planned to take the victim’s car where Kazmi worked at a panel beater and they wanted to make money from the vehicle.
“Singh got into the car with him (Kazmi) so that it would never be seen again. Further, in the barbaric attack on the victim, it was not enough that he was strangled and pepper-sprayed – he was assaulted with a hammer and his skull was fractured. The court is surprised he did not die due to his injuries,” said La Grange.
She said the court believed that none of the accused could be rehabilitated as they had made no effort to help police retrieve the stolen items.
“The sentence must be such that it protects the community from people such as these. This offence was committed out of greed rather than need.”
She said before reaching her decision on the sentence she considered the three’s personal circumstances which were presented as substantial and compelling circumstances by their defence for the court to deviate from the minimum sentence of 15 years for the charge they were convicted of.
Their personal circumstances were that Singh had grown up in government places of safety after her parents died and before that lived in a household of alcohol abuse, violence and exposure to sex at an early age, this was while Mackenzie told the court that she was a first-time offender and was eight months’ pregnant.
This was while Kazmi, a Pakistan national, who has been in the country for the past 18 years had an 8-year-old daughter back home living with his parents.
In aggravation of sentence, State prosecutor Kaystree Ramsamujh said the crime was carefully planned with each accused having had a specific role they played.
“The mastermind recruited the victims. I shudder to think how many people were victims and were ashamed to come forward.
“In this case, the victim nearly lost his life, and the hit man inflicted his injuries, he has a previous conviction of theft and there’s no evidence placed before the court that he is in the country legally.”
Ramsamujh said Singh had a previous conviction where she was convicted of theft three or four months after the incident.
The court had heard how Singh at an early age had lived in a disjointed family where her mother had told her that she would kill her father.
“It takes a sharp and calculating mind to have committed this crime, Singh had various opportunities to better her life but she ran away from places of safety,” said Ramsamujh.
Daily News