ZAINUL DAWOOD
Durban - Dramatic footage has emerged of a mother shielding her daughter while cowering behind a shelf in a Durban petrol station convenience store during an armed robbery.
The woman had the presence of mind, while robbers were kicking and slapping others in the store, to hide her tablet and wallet.
The owner, who asked not to be named, said he had enough of the hold-ups at petrol outlets in KwaZulu-Natal. He said his business had been robbed three times since September, with the most recent robbery on Friday night.
He said criminals in KwaZulu-Natal did not fear arrest and appeared to be having fun. He made the remark while reviewing CCTV footage of the robbery on Tuesday, in which four men are seen entering the store and taking about R3 000 in cash from the cashier.
Brandishing guns, the suspects took cigarettes, engine oil and stock from the shelves before fleeing.
The footage shows the robbers rounding up staff and customers and forcing them to lie down on the floor before robbing them.
Police spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Thulani Zwane said police were investigating the robbery.
The garage owner said other owners were reluctant to make public that they had been robbed, fearing they would lose customers.
The four suspects were wearing jackets with the hoods over their heads.
Outside, one walks towards a Mini Cooper parked near a petrol bowser and instructs the attendant to walk into the shop.
The car is left unattended. The car owner and a petrol attendant had been filling water and checking oil.
Two men walk into the cashier section, while another keeps guard at the door. A fourth is seen harassing, robbing and kicking customers.
The woman and her child were at the back of the store when the robbers ordered them to sit down.
The woman holds her daughter beneath her arms. She removes her wallet, tablet and phone and conceals them on the shelf.
A robber slaps a woman next to them for hiding a phone in her bra. He cocks the gun and the mother uses her body to shield her daughter.
The man pushes her roughly, appearing unhappy at his modest takings.
The men are seen leaving with bags of their loot through the forecourt and on to a busy road nearby.
The footage also showed two men, later identified as an off-duty policeman and a local bus driver, being kicked on their heads by a robber.
In other CCTV footage captured during a robbery in September at the same garage, six robbers entered the store and held up the cashier.
One of the men wore a cap with the police logo on it.
The same suspect involved in Friday’s robbery could be seen in the footage.
Zwane said the robbers were still being sought by police.
A garage owner in Clare Estate said he had now decided to close the convenience store doors at 8pm and serve customers from a hatch.
However, garage owners said they were unable to close off the cashier section of their stores with bulletproof glass because of franchise agreements.
“If we go on record we will be victimised by management. Maybe they are waiting for a staff member to die during a robbery before they can react with proper safety mechanisms,” he said. “Right now (criminals) are having fun robbing petrol stations.
“Despite the CCTV footage the police are not making any arrests. It took them three days to view the footage.”
Although statistics are not available, robberies at petrol stations around the province are commonplace.
Zwane said a war room had been set up to deal with business robberies and other serious crimes.
Police appeal to anyone who might have information on the whereabouts of the robbers to please contact the police or its Crime Stop line at 08600 10111.
Daily News