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Killers' escape bid fails
24/12/2004 00:02 - (SA)
Durban - Two convicted murderers were back behind bars on Thursday just minutes after making a run for it during a court appearance in Durban High Court, said KwaZulu-Natal police.
Sibusiso Ngema and Bekizizwe Roy Khumalo were found guilty of murder and attempted robbery with aggravating circumstances on Wednesday, said director Bala Naidoo.
Sentencing was postponed until Thursday at their request, but when the men were brought into court they jumped from the dock in a bid for freedom, reported SABC television news.
When their lawyer, Vijay Sivakumoor, tried to stop them, Khumalo attempted to stab him.
Sivakumoor instead ran after Ngema, chasing him to the top floor of the building, and trapping him there by closing the doors while he called for police or security back-up.
It was then that he heard glass shatter: Ngema had jumped from a third-storey window.
Under police guard in hospital
Ngema broke his leg in the fall and gashed open his head, said Naidoo, and was unconscious.
In the meantime, Khumalo was overpowered and rearrested by police.
One of the men was found to have a "piece of metal" wrapped in a nylon stocking. No knives or firearms were seized, said Naidoo.
Ngema was now under police guard in hospital. Khumalo was back in Westville Prison, he said.
According to the SABC, an investigation has been launched into the security breach at Westville Prison and at the court.
Both men would face charges of attempting to escape from police custody and Ngema would still stand trial for unrelated charges of murder and attempted murder next year.
The case against both of them was postponed until February 8.
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