File
The National Prosecuting Authority said it would be opposing the bail application of three Malawian nationals arrested for a robbery on a farm in the Salem area in which three people were accosted, tied up and robbed.
NPA regional spokesperson, Luxolo Tyali, said Benson Musaiwah (35), Alexander Kumaga (24), and Stevien Maldzan (22), made their first appearance at the Makhanda magistrates' court on Tuesday.
He said they face charges that include two counts of robbery with aggravating circumstances, three counts of kidnapping, and one count of attempted murder.
Tyali said Kumaga and Musaiwah were employed on the farm while Maldzan is an acquaintance.
According to an earlier police statement, a farm worker had called the 74-year-old female farm owner to report seeing a snake in the chicken coop.
It’s alleged that when she went to investigate, the employee, Kumaga, pushed her to the ground and tied her hands with a rope.
The other two, Maldzan and Musaiwah, joined him and they proceeded into the house where the woman’s 76-year-old husband, and their 57-year-old daughter, were also tied up.
The men demanded money and later fled with various items, including laptops, a cell phone, a sewing machine, a radio, clothes, and R2,800 in cash.
Tyali said the case against the three was postponed to 11 February for a formal bail application.
