Durban - At least six people are alleged to have been robbed at the ATMs in Queensmead Mall in recent weeks.
However, mall management said victims were manipulated into handing over their bank cards by criminals hanging around the ATMs.
A Facebook user warned others after the same thing happened to her father:
“Please do not withdraw money at Queensmead Mall ATMs. There have been six robberies, including my dad, and the security does nothing about it. When my dad went to the mall manager to say that the security won’t watch the ATM while he draws money, he got told to phone the security company himself and tell them to put another security guard by the ATMs. The mall’s priority has moved from security to protection from Covid-19. Please try and avoid withdrawing money there to save yourself from being robbed. Thanks.”
Mall manager Thys Swart said he watched the ATM live feed all the time and he was aware of what was happening.
Swart said criminals hung around the ATMs and would approach victims and tell them they were “doing it wrong”, then they would press the cancel button and the card comes out. “They grab your card and hand you another card, and when you put the card in and your pin, they see your pin number then move on to a different ATM and withdraw your money.
“There’s never been a single robbery here. They are swopping the people’s cards, it’s not a robbery,” said Swart.
He said according to the police there had been three incidents. The police came in and statements were taken from victims.
He said one man went to management and complained about what had happened to him. “They checked the footage and they could see what happened. The criminals know where the camera is so they do not face the camera and they have a mask on, so they cannot be recognised.”
Swart also said someone attacked one of the security guards, who was standing at one of the entrances and spraying people’s hands with sanitiser. He told the security guard that spraying people’s hands was not their job but they should be standing at the ATMs.
However, since the banks closed and moved, the ATMs were left without dedicated security guards. The guards at the mall were for the whole mall and not just the ATMs. The mall only had two guards.
“I’ll let a second guard stand at the ATMs and see if he can help,” said Swart.