A security guard was shot and killed after a gang of robbers tried to gain access to a store in the Erasmia mall in Pretoria on Tuesday evening by using machine guns.

Erasmia police spokesperson Tumisang Moloto, confirmed the attempted robbery and death.

“The number of suspects is still unknown but a firearm was found on the scene,” he says.

“Several shots were fired randomly but the suspects failed to gain entry to the store.”

A local security company says the suspects fled in two cars and that one had been injured during the shootout.

The suspects were described as using ‘heavy calibre machine guns’.

A case of murder has been filed with the Erasmia SAPS for further investigation.

The store manager was not available for comment.