File
A 35-year-old man has been sentenced to an effective 25 years for robbing two women who were walking on Cola Beach in Sedgefield.
The National Prosecuting Authority said on Friday that Ashwill Harvey was sentenced in the Knysna Regional Court for the incidents in July 2019 and again in July 2021.
His two victims were held at knife-point and also gagged with duct tape before being robbed of their belongings.
NPA spokesperson, Eric Ntabazalila, said he was charged with two counts of robbery with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.
He said in his plea and sentencing agreement, Harvey said he was fishing on 29 July 2019, when he saw Shelly du Plessis, walking on the beach. He said he decided to rob her as he had not caught any fish and did not have anything to give to his family.
Du Plessis sustained a cut on the hand as she grabbed the blade when Harvey walked up to her and grabbed her. She was then gagged and taken into thick bushes where he took her cell phone and fled.
Ntabazalila says on July 18, 2021, Harvey was fishing at the same spot and had the same bad luck with the rod when he noticed Tamsen Emmerich strolling on the beach.
He said he then decided to rob her too, using the same modus operandi as he had done with Du Plessis.
However, Ntabazalila says after trying to drive off in Emmerich's car, he was chased by onlookers and crashed the vehicle.
Western Cape Director of Public Prosecutions, Advocate Nicolette Bell, welcomed the sentence, saying the NPA will continue to vigorously prosecute gender-violence cases.
