On Saturday evening, at about 19:30, the first of four suspects entered the store, according to security footage the man was busy on his phone, presumably letting his fellow robbers know that he was in place.
Another one of the suspects entered the store, acting as if he were a customer. The third of the suspects walked in and waited at the door, he looked around before peering down to his jacket, then he withdrew a gun and waved it about threatening the customers all the while telling them to get to the floor.
The last robber entered, gun in hand and he proceeded to one of the cash registers where he assaulted one of the staff members. He then began emptying the two tills that were stationed close to one another, the first two robbers had made their way to the main cash register area, one of them emptied the tills there while the other loaded a shopping bag full of boxes of cigarettes.
As more clientele entered the business, the robber stationed at the door walked them into the shop and forced them to the floor.
The robbery went through without a hitch, the four robbers walked off to the end of the block before making their way towards the bridge crossing the N12.
Shortly after the robbers had left, one of the attendants alerted the staff outside of what had happened, the four robbers then ran off in the darkness.
The necessary authorities were contacted and the four suspects were caught on security surveillance footage, which had been handed over to the police.
“The four robbers were youngsters, and the whole thing went by quickly, no one realised what had happened until one of the attendees called out after the robbers had left,” said the garage owner.
Through thorough investigation, Witbank Police arrested the suspects.
“We would like to thank SAPS for their excellent response on Saturday night. Their outstanding investigation led to the arrests. This makes us proud of the SAPS,” added the owner.
Watch the video of the robbers in action
