Armed suspect’s daring escape plan appears to have worked

Mystery still surrounds the whereabouts of a suspected robber in the Korsman Bird Sanctuary.

At the time of going to print, the man had not been found since he was spotted attempting a daring escape by swimming across the water.

The escape came shortly after a domestic helper was attacked by a knife-wielding man for her cellphone while walking to her employer’s house in Killarney Street on Wednesday morning last week.

He then ran in the direction of the golf course and the helper’s screams alerted the homeowners who then drove in that direction. With the assistance of two other men, they tried to block the suspect’s escape.

Also Read: Search ongoing for robbery suspect at Korsman Bird Sanctuary

He crawled under the fence into the pan area and threw the phone into the grass before heading further into the sanctuary and the water.

According to the spokesperson for the Benoni Police Station, Captain Nomsa Sekele, no suspect was arrested and the person who was robbed did not open a case.

Korsman Conservancy chairperson Jane Trembath, who was on the scene, said, “I received a call to say the suspect had jumped the fence and was in the water, attempting to swim across the pan to hide in the reeds. I went down with security guards and we took out some of the canoes but we haven’t been able to find where he could be hiding.

“Some of the security staff went to the rock island because people had seen the suspect leaving something at this location. They found his shoes.

“Belgian Canine Patrols assisted to see if the dogs could track him, but still nothing. We don’t know at this stage whether he is still in the sanctuary.”

Trembath said the stolen phone had been retrieved. By Thursday morning the suspect had still not been found and Trembath said all appeared quiet in the pan area.

By Monday morning there was still no sign of the trespasser or anything else out of the ordinary.

Trembath suspects he did manage to escape under the noses of the scores of people trying to track him. She will keep the City Times updated on any further developments.

Also Read: ‘Crocs’ unwelcome at Korsman