Cape Town - A high-ranking gang boss who mercilessly killed a 1-year-old from Retreat has been sentenced to life imprisonment along with his henchmen.
Nearly six years after the murder of Tashwill Nel and the attempted murders of his cousins, Anderson “Bougaard” Koeberg and his co-accused were sentenced in the Western Cape High Court on Monday.
The toddler died inside his father’s parked car in Komlossy Street on July 8 while sitting on his uncle’s lap and playing with the steering wheel.
At the time, it was revealed that the suspects opened fire on a group of children and Nel’s mother was struck in the arm as she tried to save the boy.
Four months later, police found Koeberg in Pollsmoor Prison after he was arrested for being in possession of a stolen vehicle. They charged him with Nel’s murder.
At the time, police spokesperson FC van Wyk said Koeberg was wanted for five murder cases and 11 attempted murder cases amid widespread shootings.
Police spokesperson Wesley Twigg said the case was investigated by Hlaole Mmola of the Anti-Gang Unit.
“During the investigation in 2018 the accused, who were linked to the child’s murder, were caught by police for being in possession of unlicensed firearms.
“This built a stronger case against the accused. The investigation was centralised and a well-prepared case was presented in court.
“Based on the evidence presented to the court, the accused were found guilty of murder, attempted murder and the possession of unlicensed firearms and ammunition.”
The high court sentenced Koeberg along with Dillon Absolon and Ishmail English to life, Brendon Beakers and Vernil Simons to 20 years and Ebrahiem Moosa to 15 years’ imprisonment for murder, attempted murder and possession of unlicensed firearms and ammunition.
“They were all positively linked to the death of the 1-year-old and all were declared unfit to possess a firearm.”
Nel’s family said they were overjoyed and started crying when the sentence was handed down.
A 32-year-old relative, who asked not to be named as they still lived in fear, said: “It has been almost six years and at some point we lost faith in the justice system due to the ongoing delays, but in the end we are happy and believe justice has been served.
“We are very grateful to the judge, the prosecutor and the police for the efforts put in.”