“I saw two men walking in the shop and thought that they were customers, but little did I know that they had bad intentions,” said Mr Elias Pebembi, shop assistant.

Two of the five vengeful thieves walked into the shop at Mathailani in Mhluzi and demanded a carton of cigarettes and money.

The shop assistant behind the till refused to hand them the stuff they demanded and took an iron to try and scare them off.

“They did not run or try and attack me, One of the men had a 5 Liter bottle filled with petrol. He poured it around the shop and lit a match. The five men then fled the scene in a red VW Golf,” said Mr Pebembi.

Mr Pebembi was left to fight the strong blaze, which burnt their maize meal, papers and some spices. “Luckily it was just me in the shop, I am glad our customers did not get hurt, I thank the Lord,” he added.

Nobody was injured during the incident.

• The Mhluzi police are investigating a case of arson.