Case Law[2025] ZAGPPHC 605South Africa
Moepya and Others v S (Appeal) (A289/2022) [2025] ZAGPPHC 605 (6 June 2025)
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# South Africa: North Gauteng High Court, Pretoria
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## Moepya and Others v S (Appeal) (A289/2022) [2025] ZAGPPHC 605 (6 June 2025)
Moepya and Others v S (Appeal) (A289/2022) [2025] ZAGPPHC 605 (6 June 2025)
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sino date 6 June 2025
REPUBLIC OF SOUTH
AFRICA
IN
THE HIGH COURT OF SOUTH AFRICA
GAUTENG
DIVISION, PRETORIA
CASE
NO: A289/2022
(1) REPORTABLE: NO
(2) OF INTEREST TO OTHER
JUDGES: NO
(3) REVISED: YES/NO
DATE: 06 -06-2025
SIGNATURE: PD. PHAHLANE
In
the matter between:
LUCKY
MOEPYA & THREE
OTHERS
APPELLANT
And
THE
STATE
RESPONDENT
Delivered:
This judgment was prepared and authored by the
Judges whose names are reflected herein and is handed down
electronically by circulation
to the parties/their legal
representatives by email and by uploading it to the electronic file
of this matter on CaseLines.
The
date for hand-down is deemed to be
06 June 2025
JUDGMENT
PHAHLANE,
J
[1]
This is an appeal against conviction and sentence imposed by the
Benoni Regional Court on
11 October 2021. The appellants who were
legally represented during trial proceedings were initially arraigned
on eight (8) counts.
The first two counts relate to robbery with
aggravating circumstances read with the provisions of section 1 of
the Criminal Procedure
Act 51 of 1977 (“the CPA”) and
further read with section 51(2) of
the
Criminal Law Amendment
Act 105 of 1997 (“the
CLAA”). Counts 3−8 relate to three counts of contravening
the provisions of section 4(1)(f)
of the Firearms Control Act 60 of
2000 (for being in unlawful possession of various types of
semi-automatic rifles) and three counts
of contravening section 90 of
the same Act (for unlawful possession of ammunition).
[2]
All the appellants were convicted on counts 3–8 as charged. The
third and fourth appellants
were also convicted on count 2 of robbery
with aggravating circumstances. The trial court found no substantial
and compelling circumstances
that warranted a deviation from the
minimum sentence prescribed in terms of the CLAA and accordingly
sentenced the appellants as
follows:
2.1 The first appellant
was sentenced to an effective term of 20 years imprisonment.
2.2 The second appellant
to an effective term of 30 years imprisonment.
2.3 The third appellant
to an effective term of 40 years imprisonment; and
2.4 The fourth appellant
to an effective term of 20 years imprisonment.
[3]
Aggrieved by this decision, the appellants applied for leave to
appeal against their convictions
and sentences, and the trial court
granted them leave in respect of count 3 to 8. However, leave to
appeal was refused in respect
of count 2 on behalf of the third and
fourth appellant.
[4]
The third and fourth appellant did not make any attempt to prosecute
the appeal in respect
of count 2. Their counsel submitted before this
court that the court should entertain the appeal in respect of count
2 because
it has the inherent powers to do so.
[5]
It is trite that where the trial court denies leave to appeal to an
accused person, such
accused can apply to the High Court for leave to
appeal. If the High Court also denies leave to appeal, the
accused is afforded
further redress by directing a petition to the
relevant Judge President of the High Court. These procedures have
long been established.
It was therefore crucial for the appellants to
pursue this avenue to prosecute the appeal and not be ignorant of the
legal procedures
to be followed because non-compliance with
procedural and practice requirements renders the conviction and
sentence imposed to
remain in effect.
[6]
It evident from the perusal of the court records that the second
appellant was legally represented
by advocate Tshole during trial
before the Learned Magistrate. The record also reflects that from 23
November 2021, the first,
and fourth appellants were also represented
by advocate Tshole. On 10 December 2021 when leave to appeal was
refused by the trial
court in respect of count 2, the fourth
appellant was still represented by advocate Tshole.
[7]
When counsel on behalf of the appellants submitted that the court
should entertain the appeal
in respect of count 2, this was an
application and a submission made from the bar, and no reasons were
advanced as to why the applicable
legal procedures were ignored or
disregarded by the third and fourth appellant.
[8]
One is consequently left with the impression that
the matter did not appear to be of significant importance to
the third and fourth appellant because they chose not to follow due
process or the legal avenues within the legal framework available to
them – bearing in mind that they have always been legally
represented.
[9]
It is important to note that non-compliance with procedural
requirements cannot simply be
ignored. Nothing precluded the third
and fourth appellant from filing a petition. Accordingly, the
submission made on their behalf
is a non-starter and cannot stand
because
ignorance of the legal procedures
does not give them the latitude of a free ride on the basis that the
appeal court has jurisdiction. Consequently, the application
is
refused.
[10]
I will now deal with the circumstances that led to the arrest and the
ultimate conviction
of the appellants, which forms the basis of this
appeal. The undisputed evidence placed before the trial court was
that the complainant
in count 2, Mr Barend Du Preez, was robbed of
his Mercedez Benz C220 on 28 July 2017 by two men that were armed
with 9mm firearms.
His work equipment which included a camera, lenses
for the camera, laptop and an electronic tablet, worth R100 000
were also
forcefully taken from his possession.
[11]
It is common cause that Warrant officer Odendaal from the Benoni
Flying Squad and Mr Oosthuizen
from the Tracker Vehicle tracking
company picked up and followed the signal transmitted by the tracker
unit in the Mercedes Benz
which led them to the house of the first
appellant at Crystal Park, Extension 2, Benoni. The two arrived
simultaneously at the
scene around 23:00 and found the gates to the
premises open.
[12]
As they entered the premises, they found the Mercedes Benz parked in
front of the garage,
and a blue vehicle was parked behind it. The
original registration plates of the Mercedes Benz were covered by
false ones from
Mpumalanga. There was also a white BMW was parked
next to the blue Fiesta, and another vehicle was parked in front of
the BMW next
to the Mercedes. Warrant officer Van der Berg who was
with Warrant officer Odendaal as his crew recovered a CZA3 browning
pistol
from the blue Fiesta motor vehicle.
[13]
They also found the first appellant and another male on the driveway
coming from around
the corner of the house. The two were apprehended
and detained. The officers proceeded to the back of the house where
they found
a well-lit Lapa with canvas sides. As they entered the
Lapa, they saw a bag on the pool table with a muzzle of a firearm
protruding
from it.
[14]
Appellant two to four were seated in the Lapa around a gas heater
having drinks with another
male person. That person managed to flee
from the Lapa when the appellants were ordered to lie on the ground.
Warrant officer Odendaal
admitted to emptying the contents of the bag
onto the pool table. Upon further investigation a backpack containing
a pistol was
seen on a round table in the Lapa and a bag containing a
dash-prod rifle leaned against the chair between two of the suspects.
They also recovered magazines and ammunition for different firearms.
[15]
Warrant Officer Johannes Shoatja from Springs Local Criminal Record
Centre (“LCRC”)
attended the scene and took photographs
of the scene and collected the swabs from the firearms for DNA
purposes. He further uplifted
fingerprints from the Mercedes Benz. He
testified that the fingerprints, specifically the right-hand palm
print that he lifted
from the driver's door handle inside the
Mercedes Benz belonged to the fourth appellant.
[16]
He further testified that a glove was found on the ground behind the
Lapa and stated that
apart from the firearms found in the bag,
balaclavas were also found in the bag that was in the Lapa. He stated
that the firearm
which was in the yellow bag on the round table in
the Lapa had a live round in the chamber. Furthermore, that the
magazine of a
pistol was also recovered from the same round table.
Warrant Officer Shwatwa also found an R5 rifle on the pool table and
the Dash-prod
was on the round table in the Lapa.
[17]
Another State witness, Captain Regina Jansen Van Rensburg testified
that the DNA of the
third appellant was found on the R5 riffle and
the balaclava that was found at the scene where he was arrested.
Captain Van Rensburg
further testified that the DNA of the second
appellant was found in another balaclava that was also found at the
scene where he
was arrested.
[18]
The exhibits recovered from the scene (which included several
semi-automatic pistols, several
semi-automatic rifles, a large number
of ammunitions and several magazines) were taken in for ballistic
testing.
[19]
The evidence of the above witnesses was corroborated in toto by
several other witnesses,
and I will therefore not repeat the evidence
of those witnesses herein.
[20]
After the State had closed its case, the first and second appellants
closed their cases
without testifying or presenting any evidence to
the court and contended that they had already presented their
evidence during
their bail application. The fourth appellant also
closed his cases without testifying but called Ms. Magula as his
witness to testify
in his defence. The third appellant was therefore
the only appellant that presented oral evidence during the trial.
[21]
It is common cause that the first appellant is the only one who
testified during the bail
hearing. The other appellants moved their
bail applications by way of affidavits, which meant that their
versions noted in the
affidavits could not be tested by way of
cross-examination. Be that as it may, the record of the bail hearing
admitted into evidence
during trial had to be evaluated and
considered together with the other evidence presented by the State
during trial.
[22]
The trial court having considered the evidence presented on behalf of
the appellants during
the bail hearing, rejected it and concluded
that the evidence of the first appellant was so poor that it could
not be relied upon
in the trial proceedings. With regards to the
second to fourth appellants, the trial court held that their versions
given in their
respective bail affidavits differed from the versions
put to the witnesses during the trial, and held as follows:
“
With regards to
bail applications accused 1 was the only one that testified in the
bail application in Court. Having read his evidence
in the bail
application as well as the judgment of my learned sister that gave
such, I cannot disagree with her when she stated
that the version of
accused 1 as far as it is contained in the bail application is also −
let us use the word ‘left
wanting’.
His evidence in the
bail application was so poor that it cannot be relied upon at all in
these proceedings.
The other applicants
moved their bail applications by way of affidavit and the versions
that they gave in their affidavits are also
different to the evidence
and statements which were made to witnesses in these proceedings”.
[23]
With regards to the evidence of the third appellant before the trial
court, he denied robbing
Mr. Du Preez of his Mercedes Benz and
further denied handling the firearms. It is common cause that he was
arrested at the house
of the first appellant and his evidence was
that he went there with the fourth appellant because there was a
party.
[24]
With regards to the evidence presented on behalf of the fourth
appellant, Ms. Magula testified
that on the date of the incident,
which was 28 July 2017, she was ill and she requested the fourth
appellant who was at the house
in Vosloorus at the time to, take her
to a doctor. She presented the court with a medical certificate that
was admitted by the
court as an exhibit to prove that she consulted
the doctor on the date in question. However, the medical certificate
shows that
she was attended to by Dr Orlode on 26 July 2017 and
signed by the doctor on the same day of 26 July 2017, which is two
days before
the day of the incident.
[25]
In convicting the appellants, the trial court rejected the evidence
of the third appellant
as well as the evidence presented on behalf of
the fourth appellant by Ms. Magula as not being reasonably possibly
true. In this
regard, it held that the third appellant was not a
credible witness because his evidence was riddled with a host of
improbabilities
and contradictions.
[26]
As far as the evidence of Ms. Magula is concerned, the trial court
held that her medical
certificate contradicted her evidence in that
the offence was committed two days after she had already consulted
with her doctor
on 26 July 2017. The trial court referred to her
medical certificate as dubious because it had obvious discrepancies,
one of which
relates to the last date of examination noted as 28 July
2017, while the doctor had already signed it on the 26
th
of July 2017.
[27]
Furthermore, the trial court held that the evidence of the fourth
appellant’s fingerprints
found inside the Mercedes Benz on the
driver's door was not rebutted.
[28]
As far as
the first and second appellants are concerned, the trial court held
that even though they have the right to remain silent
and not testify
as guaranteed in section 35(3)(h) and (j) of the Constitution
[1]
,
the totality of the evidence tendered by the State required a
response from the appellants.
[29]
It appears from the grounds of appeal and the appellants heads of
argument that the appeal
against conviction is based on a finding of
fact and the law. The appellants contends that the trial court erred
in finding that
the respondent has proved its case against them
beyond a reasonable doubt. The appellants further contends that the
trial court
misdirected itself in finding that they were all in joint
possession of the firearms and further making a finding that they
acted
in common purpose.
[30]
It is trite
law that a court of appeal will not interfere with the trial court’s
decision regarding a conviction, unless it
finds that the trial court
misdirected itself as regards its findings or the law
[2]
.
To succeed on appeal, the appellants needed to convince this court on
adequate grounds that the trial court misdirected itself.
Even so,
there are well-established principles governing the hearing of
appeals against findings of fact. In the absence of demonstrable
and
material misdirection by the trial court, its findings of fact are
presumed to be correct and will only be disregarded if the
recorded
evidence shows them to be clearly wrong
[3]
.
[31]
In determining whether the appellants were
correctly convicted, this court must look at the totality of the
evidence led, including
evidence led on behalf of the appellants, and
compare it to the factual findings made by the trial court in
relation to that evidence,
and then determine whether the trial court
applied the law or applicable legal principles correctly to the said
facts in coming
to its decision.
[32]
It is common cause that all the appellants were arrested at the
residence of the first
appellant where the Mercedes Benz belonging to
Mr Du Preez was also recovered on the same day it was robbed. Of more
relevance
to the issues to be decided by this court is the illegal
firearms and ammunitions that were also found at the same premises.
It
is not in dispute that these firearms were found where appellants
two to four were seated in the Lapa and they were not concealed
because the barrels of the rifles were protruding from the bags.
[33]
As already indicated above, the first, second and fourth appellants
did not testify, and
no explanation was given as to how the firearms
came to be at the place where they were seated.
[34]
Mr Tshole appearing for the appellants submitted on behalf of the
first, second and fourth
appellants that there was no evidence placed
before the trial court calling for them to an answer because their
explanation was
given during the bail hearing. He further submitted
that the third appellant’s evidence that he was not in
possession of,
and did not handle any firearm and ammunition should
not have been disregarded by the trial court.
[35]
Relying on
S v
Boesak
[4]
Mr More appearing for the respondent submitted that the magistrate
was correct in his finding that the totality of the evidence
tendered
by the State required a response from the appellants, and that in the
absence thereof, the trial court was justified to
draw an adverse
inference against the appellants. The court in
Boesak
stated the following:
“
The
fact that an accused person is under no obligation to testify does
not mean that there are no consequences attaching to a decision
to
remain silent during the trial. If there is evidence calling
for an answer, and an accused person chooses to remain silent
in the
face of such evidence, a court may well be entitled to conclude that
the evidence is sufficient in the absence of an explanation
to prove
the guilt of the accused. Whether such a conclusion is
justified will depend on the weight of the evidence.
What is
stated above is consistent with the remarks of Madala J, writing for
the Court, in Osman and Another v Attorney-General,
Transvaal
[5]
,
when he said the following:
“
Our legal
system is an adversarial one. Once the prosecution has produced
evidence sufficient to establish a prima facie case,
an accused who
fails to produce evidence to rebut that case is at risk. The
failure to testify does not relieve the prosecution
of its duty to
prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt. An accused, however,
always runs the risk that, absent any rebuttal,
the prosecution’s
case may be sufficient to prove the elements of the offence.
The fact that an accused has to make
such an election is not a breach
of the right to silence. If the right to silence were to be so
interpreted, it would destroy
the fundamental nature of our
adversarial system of criminal justice.”
[36]
Having regard to the above principle, I concur with the respondent
that one would have
expected the appellants to testify in order to
explain why they were in possession of the items identified in counts
3 to 8, but
they elected to remain silent. I say this being mindful
of the fact that the trial court had already ruled that the evidence
of
the appellants during their bail application is rejected because
their versions given in their bail affidavits contradicted and
differed with the corroborative evidence presented during trial and
their version put to the witnesses during trial.
[37]
In respect of the first appellant, the application of the law by the
trial court was the
correct one. The trial court stated that it was
common cause that the firearms were found on a residential premises
which was under
the control of the first appellant, where he was also
ordinarily resident on the premises and over the age of 16 years. In
this
regard, the trial court relied on the provisions of
section
117(2)
of the
Firearms Control Act 60 of 2000
which provides as
follows:
117. Presumption of
possession of firearm or ammunition
(2)
Whenever
a person is charged in terms of this Act with an offence of
which the possession of a firearm or ammunition is
an element, and the State can show that despite the taking of
reasonable steps it was not able with reasonable certainty to link
the possession of the firearm or ammunition to
any other person, the following circumstances will, in the absence
of
evidence to the contrary which raises reasonable doubt, be sufficient
evidence of possession by that person of
the firearm or ammunition where
it is proved that
the firearm or ammunition was found—
(a)
on residential premises and the person was, at the time—
(i) in control
of such premises; or
(ii) over the age of
16 years and ordinarily resident at such premises;
[38]
The undisputed evidence presented before the trial court was that the
house where all the
appellants were arrested and where the items in
counts 3 to 8 were found at Crystal Park, Extension 2, Benoni,
belongs to the first
appellant. In this regard, the trial court
correctly held that the first appellant “failed to present the
court with any
credible evidence and therefore failed to rebut the
presumption in
section 117(2)
of the
Firearms Control Act 60 of 2000
.
[39]
In light of the above, I cannot fault the decision of the trial court
in its application
of the above section as it relates to the first
appellant.
[40]
It is common cause that the respondent relied on circumstantial
evidence. The trial court
correctly stated that in certain instances,
circumstantial evidence could be more compelling than direct evidence
because it is
the cumulative effect of the circumstantial evidence
that determines its probative value.
[41]
Although
the appellants were not found holding the firearms, on consideration
of the evidence as it appears on record, it is evident
that the trial
court followed the ‘holistic’ approach as enunciated in
S
v Chabalala
[6]
and evaluated all the evidence before it and also considered the
probabilities and improbabilities inherent in the case. This is
so
because the trial court had the following to say: “
it
is important for the court not to consider each circumstance in
isolation but to consider it in unison with the rest”.
[42]
It is important to note that even though the crux of this appeal is
on counts 3 to 8 which
relates to illegal possession of both firearms
and ammunition, that could not have been done without disregarding
the overwhelming
and undisputed evidence that relates to count 2 of
robbery of the Mercedes Benz belonging to Mr. Du Preez in which the
fingerprints
of the third and fourth appellants were found on the
inside of the vehicle.
[43]
A perusal
of the judgment of the trial court reflect that the legal principles
enunciated in
R
vs. Blom
[7]
,
were strictly followed by the trial court. Accordingly, the court
noted the following as the accepted circumstantial evidence:
(a)
“
On the date in question all four accused persons were
on the premises where some items very important items to this matter
were
recovered.
(b)
Two vehicles that were robbed on previous occasions as well as
the firearms formed the subjects of counts 4 up to and including
count 8.
(c)
Accused 1 was in the driveway of his house where he stays
whereas accused 2 ~ accused 3 and accused 4 were found inside a Lapa
where
all the firearms were found.
(d)
One of the vehicles that were found on the premises was the
vehicle that was robbed from the complainant in count number 1. Mr
Setswala
who was robbed of his BMW 320 on 2 June 2017. Secondly the
vehicle Mercedes Benz C220 diesel which was robbed from Mr Du Preez
on the very same day at approximately 14:00 in the afternoon was also
recovered found on the premises with number plates which has
been
changed.
(e)
Numberplates were changed in the sense that for example the
new "MP" registration numbers were just placed or, or
pasted
over the existing number plates of the vehicle.
(f)
All the firearms and ammunition as indicated in counts number
2 to 8 were found inside a Lapa. Accused 1, accused 2 and accused 4
elected to remain silent in the proceedings and closed their cases.
(g)
Accused 4 after presenting the evidence of Ms Magula, but
there is no evidence from them.
(h)
Accused 3 was the only accused person that testified in the
proceedings. His evidence as well as the evidence of the witness who
testified behalf of accused 4 was left wanting.
(i)
As far as accused 1 is concerned, evidence before the court is
that he stayed on that premises. He failed to testify despite the
fact that the bags with firearms were in the Lapa on his premises,
and two vehicles, one of which was robbed on that specific day”.
[44]
Having
regard to the above, I am of the view that the trial court applied
the legal principles to the facts of the case correctly.
It is on the
basis of the above accepted circumstantial evidence that the
respondent submitted that all the appellants jointly
possessed the
firearms found at the scene. The respondent relied on the decision in
S v
Nkosi
[8]
where the court set out the test for joint possession of firearm and
ammunition and stated that it must be possible to properly
infer from
the established facts that:
“
The issues
which arise in deciding whether the group (and hence the appellant)
possessed the guns must be decided with reference
to the answer to
the question whether the State has established facts from which it
can properly be inferred by a court that:
(a)
the group had the intention (animus) to exercise possession of
the guns through the actual detentor and
(b)
(b) the actual detentors had the intention to hold the guns on
behalf of the group. Only if both requirements are fulfilled can
there be joint possession involving the group as a whole and the
detentors, or common purpose between the members of the group to
possess all the guns”.
[45]
A consideration of the application of the above-mentioned principles
is evident from the
trial court's decision which takes into account,
the two cardinal rules of logic stated in
Blom
. It is
for this reason that the trial court held that: “
the only
reasonable inference that one can draw from the proved facts are that
all four accused persons were in joint possession
of all the firearms
on that premises in the Lapa”.
[46]
On the conspectus of the evidence as it appears
on record, I am of the view that the trial court properly evaluated
the facts before
it and correctly followed all the above legal
principles as it had correctly pointed out that it had to consider
the totality of
the evidence before it.
[47]
Accordingly, I find that the trial court did
not misdirect itself in rejecting the evidence of the third appellant
and Ms Magula
as not being reasonably possibly true. In respect of
the remainder of the appellants, I find that the trial court properly
applied
the legal principles and did not misdirect itself in
convicting the appellants and finding that the respondent proved its
case
against the appellants beyond a reasonable doubt.
[48]
Having given proper and due consideration to
all the circumstances of this case, I concur with the findings of the
trial court,
and I am of the view that the trial court did not
misdirect itself. In the absence of any misdirection by the trial
court, I cannot
find any justification why this court should
interfere with the trial court’s findings. Accordingly, the
appeal on conviction
stands to be dismissed.
[49]
With regards to sentence, it was submitted on behalf of the
appellants that the sentences
imposed on all the appellants is
strikingly inappropriate and induces a sense of shock because the
trial court misdirected itself
in not considering other sentence
options and failing to balance between the crime, the criminal, and
the legitimate interest of
society. It was further submitted that the
trial court erred in overemphasizing the interests of the community
above those of the
appellants.
[50]
In
order to deal with the alleged misdirection by the trial court, it is
important to restate the legal principles on sentencing.
It is trite
that sentencing remains pre-eminently within the discretion of the
sentencing court, and the appeal court therefore
does not enjoy carte
blanche to interfere with the sentence which has been properly
imposed by a sentencing court
[9]
.
However, appeal court is only entitled to interfere with the sentence
imposed where such a sentence is disturbingly inappropriate
or
vitiated by misdirection of a nature which shows that the trial court
did not exercise its discretion reasonably
[10]
.
The principle was expressed by the SCA in
S
v Malgas
[11]
as follows:
“
A
court exercising appellate jurisdiction cannot, in the absence of
material misdirection by the trial court, approach the question
of
sentence as if it were the trial court and then substitute the
sentence arrived at by it simply because it prefers it.
To do
so would be to usurp the sentencing discretion of the trial court”.
[51]
It is
evident from the reading of the judgment that in determining an
appropriate sentence, the trial court had due regard to the
applicable legal principles and the triad factors in
S
v Zinn,
[12]
which includes a consideration of the personal circumstances of the
appellants − which the appellants allege were ignored.
A
further reading of the judgment reveals that the trial court was also
mindful of the purposes of punishment
which
were expressed by the court
in
S v
Rabie.
[13]
[52]
The trial court gave a detailed background of the personal
circumstances of the appellants
which I will not repeat herein,
because they are already on record. It is clear from a thorough
reading of the record that in determining
the appropriate sentence
which is just and fair, the trial court also took into account the
aspect of rehabilitation, and
expressed that in applying
balance to all the factors to be considered during the sentencing
stage, none of the circumstances should
be over or under emphasised
to the detriment of the other.
[53]
The trial court referred to a large number of ammunition and quite a
number of dangerous
firearms found from the appellants, and with that
in mind, what appears to be an aggravating factor against the first
appellant
is the fact that he has serious previous convictions
involving violence including murder, robbery, theft of motor vehicle,
fraud,
possession of stolen property and housebreaking.
[54]
A further consideration which is more concerning is the fact that the
fourth appellant
has a previous conviction of possession of
unlicenced firearm which he committed while on parole.
[55]
It is on this basis that the respondent submitted that the sentence
imposed on the appellants
is commensurate with the gravity of the
offences and does not in any way evoke a feeling of shock.
[56]
In light of the circumstances of this case, and in applying the above
principles, and further
having considered the submissions made on
behalf of the appellants
-
that the sentence imposed by the
trial court is shockingly inappropriate and disproportionate to the
offence for which it was imposed,
- cannot stand.
[57]
Having given proper and due consideration to
all the circumstances of this case, I am of the view that the trial
court considered
all the factors when imposing the sentence appealed
against. This court cannot find any fault in the decision of the
sentencing
court, nor can it be said that the sentence imposed is
excessive or unjust. Consequently, I cannot find any misdirection in
the
trial court’s finding, and the appeal on sentence cannot
succeed.
[58]
In
the circumstances, the following order is made:
1. The appeal
against conviction and sentence on behalf of all the appellants is
dismissed.
PD.
PHAHLANE
JUDGE
OF THE HIGH COURT
I
agree,
FRANCIS-SUBBIAH
JUDGE OF THE HIGH
COURT
APPEARANCES
Counsel
for the Appellant : Adv. M.E Tshole
Instructed
by
: Legal Aid South Africa
Email:
mtshole@webmail.co.za
Counsel
for the Respondent : Adv. L More
Instructed
by
: Director of Public Prosecutions, Pretoria
Email:
LMore@npa.gov.za
Heard
on
: 24 July 2024
Date
of Judgment
: 6 June 2025
[1]
The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa Act 108 of 1996.
[2]
R v Dlumayo and Another
1948 (2) SA 677
(AD) at 705-6.
[3]
See: S v Hadebe and Others
1997 (2) SACR 641
(SCA) at 645e-f; S v
Monyane and Others
2008 (1) SACR 543
(SCA) at para 15; and S v
Francis
1991 (1) SACR 198
(A) at 204e.
[4]
[2000] ZACC 25
;
2001 (1) SACR 1
(CC);
2001 (1) BCLR 36
;
2001 (1) SA 912
at para 24.
[5]
1998
(11) BCLR 1362 (CC); 1998 (4) SA 1224 (CC).
[6]
2003 (1) SACR 134
(SCA) at para 15
[7]
1939 AD page 188.
[8]
1998 (1) SACR 284
W at 286 h -I
[9]
Mokela v The State
2012 (1) SACR 431
(SCA) at para 9.
[10]
S v Salzwedel
1999 (2) SACR 586
(SCA) at 591F-G; See also: S v
Kgosimore 1999 (2) SACR 238 (SCA).
[11]
2001
SACR 496
at para 12 (SCA).
[12]
S v
Zinn
1969 (2) SA 537
(A) at 540G.
[13]
1975 (4) SA 855
(A).
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