Taxi industry worker handed 20-year sentence for torching Cape Town train

A man linked to the Cape Town taxi industry has been slapped with a 20-year jail sentence for burning a train. 

Ricardo Khan was sentenced in the Blue Downs regional court this week.

Eric Ntabazalila, the spokesperson for the prosecution in the Western Cape, said the projected impact on the Passenger Rail Agency of SA (Prasa) was R9m.

Khan, who worked at Eerste River taxi rank, was convicted on a count of damage to essential infrastructure.

“It emerged during the trial that the taxi industry benefits whenever trains are put out of service, and the accused testified that he gets paid more if more taxis are in operation and business is good,” said Ntabazalila.

A train carriage was set alight at Eerste River station on March 20 2020. Law enforcement officers, Prasa officials and a team of police officials attached to the provincial command in Cape Town attended the crime scene.

“A commuter approached a law enforcement officer and pointed out a suspect. A Prasa official made a video of the incident and later that video was closely examined. A suspect was identified, and it was the same person pointed out earlier to law enforcement,” said Ntabazalila.

Khan was arrested and denied bail, and his trial began in December 2021. He was convicted and sentenced on Wednesday.

Prasa chief investigator Jan Paul Jordaan testified in the case and said the agency fell about 70% under budget monthly due to failure to generate income caused by the unavailability of trains.

Prosecutor Aradhana Heeramun said: “The impact these incidents have on the poor in our communities is where the real tragedy lay. Trains are the cheapest form of transport. When sets are put out of use, commuters are forced to use taxis, which are more expensive and this ultimately costs commuters more money.

“Only the taxi industry benefits when trains are put out of service. Prasa has to reimburse commuters due to sets being put out of use. The replacement of the carriages comes at exorbitant costs to the state.”

Western Cape director of public prosecutions Nicolette Bell welcomed the conviction.

“We are pleased with this sentence. It sends a very strong message because burning trains is economic sabotage,” she said.

“Its impact goes far beyond the immediate satisfaction of the accused and negatively affects the country’s economy.”

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