The lone robber waited for customers to exit the store before approaching the cashier, he then handed a plastic bag to the frightened woman and instructed her to fill the bag with money and cigarettes before threatening her with a firearm.

No injuries were sustained during the robbery, and the police are yet to make an arrest.

August saw a surge in business robberies in the CBD.

• On August 1, Sam Nyambo (31) died after being shot in the head while waiting in a queue at Toscana Takeaways in Mineralia.

The robber walked to the refrigerators to get an energy drink before shoving Mr Nyambo out of the queue. When Mr Nyambo pushed back, the suspect pulled out his gun and fired a single shot. The suspect, and three other men, then preceded empty the cash register before going into the manager’s office to steal CCTV footage of the murder.

• On August 15, five men targeted Constantia Cafe on Cowen Ntuli Street.

They instructed customers and staff to lay on the ground before making off with an undisclosed amount of cash.
They fled in a white VW Polo without a registration number.