702 radio host Eusebius McKaiser robbed at Melville restaurant

The talk radio host said they were robbed of their phones by a gang of several men.

702 host Eusebius McKaiser. Picture: Facebook.

Political analyst, author and Talk Radio 702 host Eusebius McKaiser and group editor of opinion and analysis at Independent Newspapers Vukani Mde were robbed of their cellphones outside a restaurant in Melville, Johanesburg.

McKaiser posted on Facebook about the alleged robbery.

“We were robbed of our phones a few hours ago by a car filled with a gang of several men,” his post read.

“We were seated at a table on the pavement right outside the entrance to the restaurant… It happened so fast. We were chatting. Next thing this thug is next to our table and each of his hands grab our respective phones that were right in front of us.”

McKaiser continued that the gang had the car’s back door open and the man jumped into the car to get away. Mde jumped up but fell into the street and hurt his hand.

It was this accident that might have prevented a disaster, as McKaiser said Mde was not able to reach for a brick to attack the men, which he believes might have led to a fight.

“You do not know what you are dealing with. They could have been armed. They could have become violent had Vukani – which he almost did – reached the door before the snatching criminal shut it and the car drove off. It could have escalated. Thank the garden gnome for small mercies.”

McKaiser said the car was a blue Toyota Corolla and the incident happened in no more than 60 seconds.

He urged community members to take care of their belongings and “take care out there, even if you cannot guarantee that taking care will stop criminals who are not deterred, courtesy [of] a weak criminal justice system and a broken economy fueling desperation in this deeply unequal society of ours [not to be confused with excusing wrongdoing]”.

This is a developing story and more details to come.