Robbers give customers free clothes before robbing store of items worth R100K
The six suspects were arrested with an additional two suspects being arrested later by the Trio Task Team.
Picture: iStock
A case of business robbery has been opened at the Brixton Police Station after five suspects robbed a clothing store at a popular student mall in Auckland Park.
The robbers entered the store, tied up the staff and took cell phones, cash and clothing to the value of about R100,000, reports Northcliff Melville Times.
The tracing of one of the stolen phones enabled the police to arrest eight suspects in Katlehong after a shootout with officers.
According to the station’s spokesperson Jeanette Backhoff, the suspects allegedly entered the clothing store just like any other customer would.
She said: “One stopped to be sanitised and [another suspect] walked past. The store worker at the door called the second man back and sanitised him. The man then said to the worker that he must not make a noise and pointed a firearm at him.”
Three other suspects then went behind the store’s counters pretending to be staff telling shoppers the store’s computer system was offline.
“They told customers that the system was offline and gave them free clothes. When [all the customers] left, the staff were brought together and all their cell phones were taken.”
The suspects fled the scene and it wasn’t until a customer walked into the store that the staff started screaming for assistance. The suspects were captured on CCTV fleeing the store and it showed that they used a white BMW and silver Mazda 6 to make their getaway.
Once it was discovered that one of the staff’s stolen cell phone was still on, it was traced by Brixton Flying Squad, Tactical Response Team Johannesburg, EMPD Swat, Magma Investigation Tracing, E-Track and Savika Tracing Unit.
Backhoff added: “Two vehicles, two firearms, the stolen cell phones, cash and clothing were recovered and seized at the house in Katlehong.”
The six suspects were arrested with an additional two suspects being arrested later by the Trio Task Team.
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