‘Extreme concern’ after another city mall attack
FOLLOWING a spate of violent armed robberies in shopping malls in recent weeks, and the attack on a jewellery store in Cavendish Square yesterday, the Cape Chamber of Commerce says it is extremely concerned.
Chamber president Janine Myburgh said the robberies had the potential to affect tourism and the economy of the province.
Yesterday morning seven men armed with guns walked into Trigg Jewellers at Cavendish Square, threatened staff and smashed the display windows, making off with an undisclosed number of watches.
Trigg is close to one of the mall’s main entrances.
Police spokesperson FC van Wyk said the men fled when the fire alarm went off.
Shoppers and store managers said they were scared when they were at malls because they could get injured during a robbery.
In the past year a number of city malls have been targeted by brazen robbers.
There was also an attempted cash-in-transit heist at the Promenade in Mitchells Plain recently.
Yesterday’s robbery was the second at Trigg Jewellers.
Two years ago, five armed men made off with at least 50 watches, each valued at between R20 000 and R150 000.
In February this year three armed men robbed staff at Cavendish’s Scoin Shop, taking gold coins and cash.
Three weeks ago, two shopping malls in the city became targets of cash-in-transit heists, but both attempted robberies were foiled.
There have also been attacks at Blue Route Mall and Canal Walk. Yesterday a shopper, who did not want to be named, said going to malls was becoming increasingly risky.
“Anything can happen anytime. I tell my family to always be extra careful,” he said.
A store manager, who has a shop close to Trigg, said she always told her staff not to retaliate in the event of a robbery. “What we witnessed this morning was scary,” she said.
Myburgh said law enforcements and police should not relax, and that good intelligence on criminal activities was vital. “The criminals seem to be operating quite openly, endangering both employees and the public.
“The risk of a shoot-out in a mall, a public place or a busi- ness is growing,” said Myburgh. “We strongly advise our members (businesses) to ensure that their security systems are working well and that their security cameras can provide the evidence to identify criminals.”
Myburgh said although security was better than in the other major cities, law enforcement should not relax.
Yesterday afternoon, Cavendish Square centre manager Brenda Bibby said all retail stores were secured and trading as usual.
Van Wyk said an armed robbery case had been opened for investigation. He urged anyone with any info to contact Crime Stop on 08600 10111. sandiso.phaliso@inl.co.za
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