Durban - Two service stations in Sherwood, Durban, were held up by three men in the space of 24 hours at the Easter weekend.
The three-man gang first held up the Engen Welcome Motors Garage on King Cetshwayo Highway (formerly Jan Smuts) on Sunday night.
The next night, they struck at the 45th Cutting Engen Garage and made off with cash from the store tills.
Police have yet to make any arrests.
The robbery at the Engen 45th Cutting store was captured on CCTV camera.
It showed a bald-headed man wearing yellow pants walking into the store. He is seen buying a box of matches at the counter. Two staff members are behind the till point and a guard is seated between the door and till point area.
Then a second man walks in wearing a green trench coat with flower embroidery designs on each shoulder.
He stands with his back towards the cash point pretending to look at the goods on the shelves. He then takes a piece of paper out of his pocket.
A third man, dressed in a white jacket and hat, was also seen walking around the store.
In a split second, the three come towards the till point and the man with the trench coat pulls out a gun tucked in his belt. He cocks the weapon and walks towards the unarmed security guard. He orders him to the ground, along with the two cashiers.
The gang remove the trays from the till and put the contents into a bag and walk out of the store. Staff still have their heads down on the floor and only get up after a minute.
Out of the camera shot, two customers, who were in the store, hid behind a shelf until the ordeal was over. None of the gang wore balaclavas or shielded their faces from the store cameras.
Richard Critchlow, the garage owner and chairman of the Regional Advisory Council for Engen Petroleum Dealers, said it was a quick robbery in which the robbers did not take anything besides the till trays with cash.
This was not normal during a robbery, he said. The gang went down a stairway towards Foreman Road, but he was not sure if they were picked up by a car.
“We have been robbed four times since October. We have become easy targets. Staff at the till point thought the robber with the coat had attended the weekend Easter prayers. They were about to ask him when he drew the gun. They got away with R2 800. Robberies on a continuous basis affects the business,” he said.
“We have 12 panic buttons and 32 cameras around the forecourt and inside the store. What can we do to prevent and catch these criminals? We rely on police to make arrests from the CCTV footage, but they don’t. A wake-up call will be when someone gets shot,” he said.
Critchlow said he was especially concerned about the safety of the staff and customers during these robberies.
Critchlow said on Sunday night, six men robbed Bayview Motors petrol garage in Chatsworth.
Police spokesman, Major Thulani Zwane, confirmed the incidents and said police were investigating.
Daily News