Two arrested after CBD robbery
One of Carletonville's star detectives was only released from the hospital on Monday after a group of thugs from the other side of the province shot him in the leg during a daring robbery in the Carletonville CBD.
Personnel from the Pep store on Emerald Street were busy in the shop when two unknown men walked in at approximately 09:30 on the morning of Wednesday, 14 June. Another man stood outside the door, and his accomplice was next to a nearby car guard.
Suddenly, the two men in the store pulled out firearms and marched the security guard and three staff members on duty to the offices at the back of the business. The robbers then broke open the safes where cell phones and money are kept and stuffed the contents into three bags.
One staff member pressed the panic button, which alerted Gladiator Security. Some of the security officers raced to the scene. One of the security officers walked into Pep and saw the robbery in progress.
Two robbers ran towards him, but he grabbed one of the bags with loot. The robbers ran toward the street but fired a shot at him while fleeing. They then ran toward Flint Street and turned right into Annan Road. The security officers chased them as they fled toward Absa. Detectives from Carletonville heard what was going on and also chased after them.
Constable Thabo Kharejane, another detective on leave at the time, was sitting in his private car near Absa when he noticed the commotion. He jumped out and yelled at the suspects to stop. One turned around and shot at Kharejane, hitting him in his calf. Two other detectives, Sergeants Malesela Kekana and Michael Dire Ramasimong, ran after the robbers, who fired several shots at them. The detectives retaliated, and one of the robbers was hit and collapsed near the Wimpy on Palladium Street.
The police immediately arrested the robber, who was shot in his upper body and buttocks, before an ambulance transported him to Carletonville Hospital. The 43-year-old suspect was later transferred to Leratong Hospital. One of his accomplices was also arrested.
The injured Kharejane was immediately rushed to Lenmed Hospital and was released on Monday.
The two robbers who were arrested are both from Delmas. The suspect, who was not injured, a 39-year-old, appeared in the Oberholzer Magistrate’s Court the day after the incident. The two other robbers are still at large.
