A Helderkruin resident’s relaxing afternoon quickly turned into a nightmare experience on 8 September.
Shirley Beukes was sitting in her bedroom looking out the window when she heard a loud crash.
“When I looked up there was a man standing in my bedroom,” said a shocked Beukes. The man grabbed her by her neck and then, while dragging her through the room by her arm, kept screaming at her to tell him where the panic button was.
“He had a knife to my throat and kept telling me to look down – not at his face – and I won’t get hurt,” she said.
Beukes’s helper, Mirriam Lalaphi was in her room outside when the incident happened. She said she heard a table crashing to the floor followed by a scream. Lalaphi went to the house to check on Beukes thinking she might have fallen and hurt herself. “As I went into the house one of the robbers was standing behind the back door. When I came in, he closed the door behind me, put a knife to my neck and said I should be quiet and not scream,” she said. She was also taken to the bedroom where she saw Beukes with the other robber. They kept asking her where the panic button was, so she showed them. When they turned around, she took the opportunity, and ran out of the house screaming for help.
The neighbour, Ahmed Sally heard the commotion and used his panic button to alert the security company. ADT and Roodepoort Police were quickly on the scene but unfortunately the robbers had fled and could not be apprehended. Apcan Security also responded to the call from the Neighbourhood Watch and made sure everyone was alright.
It is believed the assailants gained entry to the yard by climbing over the back wall, and that they fled the same way.
This is the second incident at her residence in two weeks and Beukes believes it is the same people.
“They took all my gold jewellery and watches but left my cellphone and handbag. I am very traumatised but luckily we weren’t hurt. It could have been so much worse,” a clearly shaken and emotional Beukes said.
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