Animal lovers dig deep after clinic armed robbery

ANIMALS lovers and members of the public have opened their pockets to the Mdzananda Animal Clinic after it was robbed.

The clinic in Khayelitsha was robbed around lunchtime by armed gunmen, who also made off with a large sum of money last week.

The staff believe they were “stalked” by the robbers as they were targeted while preparing to deposit money.

Spokesperson for the organisation Marcelle du Plessis said there were four female staffers at the clinic when three men walked in, posing as customers.

“They showed us a gun and asked for all the money. Our money is usually safely locked away, but they somehow knew that we had just counted it all and that we were about to leave to bank the money.

“They took a significant amount. It was sadly larger than our usual banking amount because it contained all the donations from our yoga event.”

Du Plessis said the robbers tried to take their laptops but after much pleading, as all their work was on them, the robbers left with just the money and a cellphone before locking the staff in the storeroom.

“This is after our mobile clinic driver got robbed at gunpoint last week. Let’s just say we are all shaken but grateful that we are all okay.

“We’re extremely sad about the large amount of money lost, but our lives are safe. You don’t even have time to process it because we have to carry on, the animals need us.”

Du Plessis said the stolen money was to be used for medication.

She said they were grateful for donations received, but they were still in need of more to function optimally.

“It affected us cause we completely rely on donations and we lost our main funders due to international budgets cut. This has taken a large chunk out of our budget for the month. People have been generous with donating and we appreciate it.”

Police spokesperson Sergeant Noloyiso Rwexana confirmed that a case had been opened and no one had been arrested. Anyone with more information about this incident should contact Harare SAPS at 021 363 9000 or the investigating officer, Constable Ngabayena, at 078 490 6603.