Search for killer gang still on

13/06/2012 004 Members of the gang push the manager at gunpoint into the office of the store where money is kept. Picture: cctv footage

13/06/2012 004 Members of the gang push the manager at gunpoint into the office of the store where money is kept. Picture: cctv footage

Published Dec 11, 2012

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Johannesburg - Even after a R120 000 reward, none of the members of a gang who shot and killed a Randburg store manager in June has been arrested.

On Monday, it was exactly six months since Paul Androliakos was murdered by the gang, which was linked to other crimes across Gauteng, a police source said.

On Sunday, a memorial service was held for Androliakos at the Pantanassa Hellenic Orthodox Church in Melrose.

His partner, Rory Niri, said he was still struggling to come to terms with what had happened, but was grateful for the support of family and friends at the memorial.

On June 10, eight men stormed the Jukskei Park Spar in Randburg just before closing time and held up the store. CCTV footage captured the robbery, during which a security guard was hit twice in the face before being dragged off screen.

The gang then walked into the office, holding a staff member at gunpoint.

Androliakos was shot during the robbery and later died of his wounds in hospital.

In the footage, as the gang flee, they fire at a security guard and graze his head before stealing his vehicle and fleeing the scene in it.

The footage shows the shot guard walking back into the store, bleeding from his head.

Spar’s divisional marketing director, Mark Hedderwick, said the R100 000 reward offered by the supermarket group for any information leading to the arrest of the criminals still stood.

He said an additional R20 000 from the Monster energy drink company was also being offered.

“We’ve had no hard-and-fast info,” Hedderwick said.

Niri said he had not heard anything from the police about the investigation.

Gauteng police have been asked repeatedly to provide details about the investigation since last Tuesday, but failed to respond to The Star’s questions.

Exactly a week before Androliakos was murdered, a liquor store in Melville was hit by seven men. The incident was also caught on CCTV.

Many of the men appeared to be from the same gang who hit the Jukskei Park Spar.

The owner of an industrial bakery, Sean Tuna, contacted The Star later in the month and said his business had been hit by an armed gang on June 23.

He said he had seen the CCTV pictures published in The Star and believed they were the same group.

In this incident, Tuna and his employees fired at the robbers, some of whom were armed with R5 assault rifles. The gang fled without any money.

Anyone with information is urged to call Spar at 071 316 8947 or the Douglasdale police at 011 699 1300. Alternatively, SMS your anonymous tip-off to 32211.

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