Two EC petrol stations robbed

Guard shot in the face in Vincent while 12 attack Mthatha facility

TWO Eastern Cape petrol garages were robbed at the weekend and an armed response guard was shot in the face while on a coffee break at one of the service stations.

The Hartwig & Henderson alarms and response security guard was shot during a robbery at the Caltex garage in Western Avenue in Vincent, East London, yesterday.

Meanwhile, on Friday, 12 men fled with an undisclosed sum of money after robbing the Sasol garage in Norwood in Mthatha.

The Caltex garage robbery was caught on CCTV camera. The robber was not wearing a mask. The incident happened shortly after 2am yesterday.

Eyewitnesses said the unidentified guard from Hartwig & Henderson had not been responding to the crime at the time, as the garage is protected by Red Alert security.

Speaking to the Dispatch yesterday, garage manager Brett Osborne said the drama unfolded shortly after 2am.

Petrol attendants on duty were seated in the attendants’ room, as it was quiet, when the incident occurred Osborne said.

“At about 1.30am a white Mercedes [Benz] drove into the garage and stopped in the parking lot. This was followed by a white VW Golf that came in at about 1.50am and parked next to the Mercedes.

“Both vehicles soon drove out to Vincent Road where they stopped. A suspect alighted from the Golf and walked back to the garage shop,” said Osborne.

He said at that time the Golf, which was used as a getaway car, then turned from Vincent Road and parked in Western Avenue.

“Once inside the shop the suspect was attended to by a female cashier. He took out R20 and said he wanted airtime.

“While the cashier was assisting him he pulled out a gun and demanded that she hand over all the money in the till,” Osborne said.

He said it was at this time that the Hartwig & Henderson armed response officer pulled up his car in the parking lot.

Osborne said the suspect left the shop empty-handed when he saw the officer.

“The gunman left the store to go to the getaway Golf parked in Western Avenue before returning brandishing a firearm,” said Osborne.

“He ambushed the officer, saying, ‘give me your gun’.

“The guard then told him, ‘hey man, take everything you want’.

“The suspect then fired a shot and hit the guard in the face. He then ran back to the shop armed with two guns and took his bag and fled down Western Avenue to the getaway car,” Osborne said.

The guard drove himself to a spot in Oxford Street where ambulances and armed response guards normally park, Dynamic Emergency Services said.

The ambulance company said the guard had been treated for an entry and exit wound on the chin before he was taken to hospital. He was later discharged. Police spokesman Captain Mluleki Mbi said the gunman was still at large. He said a case of business robbery and attempted murder had been opened for investigation.

In Mthatha, police spokeswoman Captain Dineo Koena said the Sasol garage robbery took place at 8pm on Friday.

“The men pointed firearms at the petrol attendants and forced them into the garage shop where they ordered everyone including cashiers and customers to lie on the floor,” Koena said.

“They then took the money from the safe and tills. They left and hijacked a VW Polo from the forecourt.” —