A LOCAL businessman and his wife were subjected to the whims of armed robbers on Monday night, in what is now the fourth confirmed armed robbery in recent weeks.
The couple, who prefer to remain anonymous, returned home in Union Street, Empangeni, shortly after 7pm and walked into the clutches of three criminals.
‘They tied us up and demanded cash,’ said the man. ‘I kept telling them we didn’t have cash on us, but they kept on shouting at us.’
He remembers how the men calmly discussed shooting them as they lay bound and gagged on the floor.
‘They hit me a couple of times on the head,’ he said. ‘I watched helplessly as they dragged my wife to another room.’
The suspects made off with a number of cellphones and house keys, as well as the keys to the husband’s shop in the Rail. As they fled, one of the suspects dropped a fully loaded 9mm magazine, which was recovered by the police.
The couple sustained no serious injuries, but were visibly shaken by the ordeal.
The Zululand Observer has reported on two other incidents, namely an armed robbery outside Standard Bank where one man was shot and killed last Tuesday, and another at the Sanlam Centre on Monday morning.
On Friday last week, Power Spar was also robbed. Two armed gunmen entered the shop at approximately 7am and made off with an undisclosed amount of cash.
Captain Mbongeni Mdlalose confirmed that no one was injured during the robberies at Sanlam Centre and Power Spar.
‘Empangeni SAPS are still investigating the incidents. No arrests have been made so far.’
