DURBAN - Three alleged business robbers were arrested by police while trying to escape through the roof on Tuesday morning.
Police spokesperson Colonel Thembeka Mbele said at 8.30am, employees at a clothing store in the Hluhluwe city centre, northern KwaZulu-Natal, were working when they were accosted by three armed men who were wearing hats and masks partially covering their faces.
At gunpoint, the suspects instructed staff and customers to lie down on the floor while proceeding to forcefully grab the manager and forced him to open the safe in the storeroom.
“While the other suspect dealt with a manager, the other two were busy lagging brand new cellphones in black carry bags and also robbing customers of their own phones. The Hluhluwe police received a complaint of robbery in progress and proceeded to the scene of the crime in their full strength, and intercepted the suspects who had held staff members and customers hostage at the storeroom,” Mbele said.
“The suspects attempted to escape using roof but failed. The police managed to rescue the victims and arrested the three suspects who were found in possession of two unlicensed firearms, cellphone and cash.”
Mbele added that the suspects, aged between 24 and 32, would appear in the Hluhluwe Magistrate’s Court for robbery and possession of unlicensed firearms.
Daily News