Suspect plays the keyboard as church robbery ‘circus’ unfolds

A church robbery in Nelson Mandela Bay briefly turned into an unsolicited musical interlude when one of the robbers made a beeline for the keyboard.

The man was apparently unable to resist playing his favourite tune while his alleged accomplices held stunned congregants at gunpoint.

The unusual detail surfaced during the formal bail application of one of the other suspects, Unamandla Mngcongo, 23, in the New Brighton Magistrate’s Court.

Refusing him bail on Thursday, magistrate Fundile Matoto said the suspects had turned a place of worship into a circus.

Mngcongo was arrested shortly after a group stormed the Sunday morning service at the Assemblies of God Church in Mtshiselwa Street, Kwazakhele, and robbed congregants of their belongings and cash.

The state alleges Mngcongo was one of seven robbers.

Wearing balaclavas, the group broke through the back window of the church at about 11am on June 7.

They then allegedly pointed firearms at the shocked congregants, forced them to open their banking apps on their cellphones to transfer money and then forcibly took their devices.

The state said that as the robbery unfolded, one of the men swaggered to the keyboard at the front of the church, announcing he was about to play his favourite song.

He began striking the keys, leaving the already terrified congregants even more stunned as they watched the surreal moment play out.

The group then fled through the same window they had used to enter the church.

They escaped with several cellphones and cash.

One congregant managed to call the police who arrived and gave chase.

Mngcongo was caught and has been in custody since.

The state said that cellphones belonging to some of the congregants were allegedly found in his possession.

Mngcongo faces a charge of robbery with aggravating circumstances.

According to the charge sheet, the robbers made off with about 15 cellphones, including an iPhone 16 Pro, Samsung Galaxy AO5, two iPhone 11s and an Honor 10 smartphone.

The case against Mngcongo was initially postponed to June 24 for the state to confirm any previous convictions or pending cases.

After a formal bail application, which the state opposed, Mngcongo was finally denied bail on Thursday.

Represented by Legal Aid SA, Mngcongo’s personal circumstances were presented to the court in support of his bail bid.

He said he did not have any children and lived with his mother and several other family members.

He worked for a well-known Gqeberha food and beverage company as a merchandiser and earned a monthly salary of R5,000.

He said he did not possess any travel documents and should he be released from custody he would not evade his trial, endanger the safety of the public, attempt to influence or intimidate witnesses or destroy evidence relating to the case.

Mngcongo said he did not have any pending criminal cases or previous convictions.

He submitted further that he intended to plead not guilty to the charges against him but did not wish to disclose the basis of his defence at this stage.

Mngcongo indicated that he would do so at the trial.

He said he could afford bail of R500.

The state, meanwhile, opposed his application for bail due to the seriousness and prevalence of the offence.

It said it was also still pursuing his alleged accomplices.

It is alleged that Mngcongo initially admitted to his role after his arrest but had since denied any wrongdoing.

Handing down his judgment, Matoto said a place of worship had been turned into a circus.

“Congregants had to stop the service and listen to a robber playing a tune on the [keyboard],” the magistrate said.

“In other words, the church service was turned into a circus.”

He said the robbers had left the congregants who had gathered to worship feeling traumatised and shocked.

Speaking afterwards, a church member who did not want to be named for safety reasons, said they were still reeling from the robbery but were grateful that Mngcongo was not granted bail.

“It is so disappointing that a church, a place that should provide refuge and safety, especially for the vulnerable, was robbed.

“Now children are traumatised and our community outreach programmes are affected as a result.

“We help our communities, including people affected by substance abuse.

“For something like this to happen is really heartbreaking.

“But we will continue with our work nonetheless.”

The church member said the law now needed to take its course.

Some of the programmes stalled by the robbery include the purchase of blankets for the elderly and shoes for needy school children in the community.

In August, four gunmen stormed the Assemblies of God Church in New Brighton during the weekly Monday prayer service.

Police said at the time that congregants were robbed of their personal belongings including cellphones, a laptop and an undisclosed amount of cash.

A video of the incident was later widely circulated on social media, showing congregants lying facedown on the floor while others knelt as a group of men walked between the church pews.

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