Mall robberies top priority for Gauteng police
JOBURG - R200 000 reward to anyone who has information that may lead to the arrest and successful prosecution of wanted suspects.
Gauteng Police Commisioner Lesetja Mothiba expressed his concern over the growing spate of robberies and attacks that occur at malls.
As part of fighting crime, the commissioner mentioned that the police were meeting with the management of different malls to see how they can beef up their security standards.
“At some malls we find that CCTV cameras are not working and their guards are too relaxed,” he said at a media briefing.
Mothiba also mentioned that his office will allocate resources to police so that they may properly intervene in these robberies.
“Detectives from the national office have been assigned to help local police stations with investigations of the recent violent mall robberies.”
He also voiced his concern about the timing of these robberies. He mentioned that recent attacks and robberies were over a weekend and most recently, the one at Cradlestone Mall, where a Samsung phone shop was targeted. Police are now searching for a gang who made off with cellphones and tablets worth hundreds of thousands of rands.
It’s understood that five gunmen entered the shop and threatened the staff with guns before locking them in a backroom.
“This is a period where communities are busy with their shopping for the festive season,” said Mothiba.
The commissioner also informed that police are searching for eight men who robbed Timberland at World Wear Shopping Centre.
On Thursday 4 September, the clothing store in Fairland was targeted. Eight armed men made off with clothing worth an undisclosed amount. No arrests have been made yet.
They pointed firearms at the employees and removed all clothing from the shop. The men fled in a white Toyota Hilux double cab and another unidentified car.
At Northgate Mall on Tuesday 2 September, there was an armed robbery at a Cell C store. Two robbers held up staff at a cellphone shop in the mall. No shots were fired and there have been no immediate reports of injuries.
At Cresta Shopping Centre on Wednesday 13 August, three armed men stormed the Apple iStore phone shop and robbed them of an undisclosed number of phones and electronic equipment. The suspects fired randomly in the parking area, leaving one person injured.
The commissioner also released some of the footage of wanted suspects gathered during the commission of these robberies.
He also announced that there is reward of up to R200 000 for any information that may lead to the arrest and successful prosecution of the criminals.
In all the robberies, there were between two and five male suspects. People with information can contact Crime Stop at 08600 10111 or Crime Line at SMS 32211.
Mothiba also urged community members and shoppers to be vigilant and alert while doing their shopping at malls. He added that as the festive season is approaching, police visibility will be increased around some malls that have been identified as high risk.
