Nearly a year after a Vryheid’s Lust robbery where a car dealer was robbed of more than $2 million in cash other valuables, a third man has been charged with the crime.
Renhart Khan, 21, was yesterday charged with robbing Parbattie Ramroop of $2,027,000 and a Samsung Galaxy cellphone valued $120,000, on December 23, 2014, at Vryheid’s Lust.
Khan was also accused of robbing Hemchand Narine of a .32-calibre revolver valued $200,000 and six rounds of .32 ammunition, valued at $6,000.
Khan pleaded not guilty to both charges read.
According to the case prosecutor Deniro Jones, Khan was implicated in the crime after he was caught on CCTV cameras. The other two suspects in the matter are on trial at the Sparendaam Magistrate’s Court.
On December 23, 2014, businessman Narine and his wife, Ramroop, also known as Diane, were approached by two bandits, one of whom was armed with a gun, at their Vryheid’s Lust home. The men then demanded the couple hand over a bag, which contained $2,027,000—money which they had earlier withdrawn from the bank—and relieved Narine of his cellphone, firearm, driver’s licence and other valuables.
After the robbery, the bandits reportedly tried to make their escape in a getaway vehicle parked nearby but were forced to abandon it after they unexpectedly met a dead end in the road.
Just a few days after the robbery, taxi driver Leroy Lloyd, 25, of Lot 842 Diamond Housing Scheme, was charged with the crime. In March this year, another taxi driver, Alistair Norton, was charged with the crime.
Khan’s attorney made an application for reasonable bail to be granted to the accused pending the trial. He stated that the defendant had a fixed place of abode and so was not a flight risk. The attorney added that his client had an alibi for the time the robbery occurred. The application was, however, denied by Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan after the prosecutor objected due to the gravity of the charge and the penalty it attracts.
Khan will remain behind bars until November 30, when the matter is scheduled to be recalled at the Sparendaam Magistrate’s Court.
