The man accused of wounding three police officers following a robbery made his first appearance in the Athlone Magistrate’s Court yesterday.
Bantu Hamile, 32, now faces four charges of attempted murder and one of business robbery. According to the State, Hamile was with his accomplices when they robbed Pick n Pay at Philippi Junxion last Friday.
Addressing the court yesterday, State prosecutor, Michaela Munnik, said at the time of the robbery, the four officers were in a marked vehicle and noticed a group of men running towards Pick n Pay.
Munnik said: “The police officials proceeded towards the centre in Philippi Junxion.
“They then noticed the accused at a later stage and was identified by one of the officials. He was accompanied by other males, a shootout then occurred and the accused and the other men started shooting at police. The accused was described by the driver of the police vehicle.”
She explained that during the incident, one officer was struck in the eye, another in the neck and the third in the head. But the accused also faces an attempted murder charge for the police officer who was driving the vehicle they were in.
Munnik said Hamile was identified as one of the gunmen in the robbery.
She said: “The manager came by as well, joining the complainant, the accused was identified by this complainant as one of the men with a firearm. He was seen taking money from the till. The complainant mentioned that there was a firearm and the accused had a bag with him, took cigarettes and money from till. The accused was linked to the case by a photo identity parade, and his fingerprints were lifted from the scene.”
Hamile’s lawyer said he would be applying for bail and the case was postponed to next Tuesday.