Dad fatally shot in robbery

A GAUTENG businessman was killed during an an alleged armed robbery last Monday.

Suresh Parsot, 68, of Bronkhorstspruit, was shot in the lower back soon after he and his two sons, Meetesh and Dinesh, had left their family-owned supermarket.

Meetesh said: “We closed the business at around 6pm and we got into Dinesh’s bakkie … Dad and Dinesh were going to drop me off at home about five minutes from the supermarket.

“Dinesh stopped on the roadside and as I got out of the car and closed the door, I heard a gunshot. I turned and saw a white Audi A4 ram into the back of the bakkie.”

He said two armed men jumped out. “One guy ran towards me and the other went to Dinesh.”

Meetesh said the one gunman demanded money from him.

“I tried to tell him that I did not have money. I even gave him a packet that I was carrying with the supermarket and my house keys.”

While this was happening, he heard two gunshots and his brother drove off. He said his wife and their neighbours came outside and the men got into their car and left.

He said Dinesh returned and told him to get into the bakkie as they needed to take their father to the hospital.

“Our dad was shot and Dinesh was shot in the shoulder.”

Meetesh said that when they arrived at the hospital, his father was struggling to breathe and was losing consciousness.

“We asked the paramedics to assist us and to put him on a stretcher, but as he was being attended to, he passed away.”

He said the bullet grazed Dinesh, who was discharged the next day.

Meetesh said he believed the gunmen were monitoring them.

“My dad worked in his mother’s business as a child and he went on to run that business. We opened our own supermarket a couple of years ago.”

Meetesh said their father arrived every day towards the afternoon to check on things and catch up with the customers.

“Everyone loved and valued him. He treated people with kindness and love. We hope those responsible are punished.”

Parsot’s funeral was held last Tuesday at the Bronkhorstspruit Hindu Cemetery.

Gauteng police spokesperson Captain Mavela Masondo said cases of murder and attempted murder had been opened.