The appellant was convicted in the regional court, Cape Town, on two counts of armed robbery committed eight years apart. The first robbery occurred on 11 June 1999 in Bo-Kaap, Cape Town, when a businessman was robbed at gunpoint of cash shortly after leaving a bank; the getaway vehicle was a stolen white Venture van. The second robbery occurred on 26 January 2007 in Kensington, Cape Town, when an employee was robbed at gunpoint of R54 300 from a white Isuzu bakkie after returning from a bank. In neither case could the complainants identify the perpetrators. The only evidence linking the appellant to both robberies was fingerprint evidence: his left thumbprint was found on the Venture van involved in the first robbery, and his right palm print was found on the Isuzu bakkie involved in the second robbery. The appellant denied involvement and offered innocent explanations for the presence of his fingerprints.