Nine alleged armed robbers arrested for business robbery after shoot-out

Nine men, four of them wounded, were arrested after a shoot-out with police following an armed robbery in Kranskop in the KwaZulu-Natal midlands, police said on Saturday.


A group of armed men staged an armed robbery at Kharodias Wholesalers in Kranskop on Friday and robbed the owner at gunpoint of R520,000 in cash, cigarettes, airtime, and a pistol belonging to the manager, police said in a statement.

The suspects fled the scene in four getaway cars and “fired several shots as they passed the police station en route to the Kwadolo area” in the Msinga police precinct. The suspects were then pursued by South African Police Service (SAPS) officers and a massive air and ground supported operation was conducted.

The operation resulted in the arrest of nine suspects at different houses, four of whom had been wounded during the shoot-out. The wounded suspects were treated on the scene by paramedics and three were transported to hospital.

One AK47 riffle, one shotgun, one revolver, three pistols, cash, cigarettes, airtime, and nine cellphones were recovered from the suspects. Four vehicles used in the commission of the crime were also recovered. It was believed that all the suspects were from the Umlazi, KwaMashu, and Msinga areas, police said.

For more news your way, follow The Citizen on Facebook and Twitter.