Robbers target Cresta
The Cresta Shopping Centre has become an armed robbery target.
Cresta Shopping Centre seems to have become an easy target for criminals where three shops at the centre have been robbed by armed men in the last two weeks.
Six armed men robbed three cashiers at Bidvest Bank at 10.30am on 23 July and fled in a grey Opel with an undisclosed amount of money. In another incident two armed men robbed the Telkom Direct store at 8am on 24 July. An employee entered the shop and two men tried to follow him inside. The men were pushing a trolley with two boxes inside it. They claimed to be delivering something, but the manager inside the shop said no deliveries were expected. They then pushed their way into the shop. The men demanded the safe keys and took R36 000 from the safe and few cellphones. They put the money and cellphones in the boxes. When they noticed a security guard had been watching them, they exited through the emergency exit inside the shop. They left the trolley and the boxes containing the money and cellphones in the shop.
On 30 July four armed men robbed the Altech Autopage Cellular store and fled in a white Mercedes Benz with several cellphones and accessories worth an estimated R300 000.
All three shops are situated on the same floor and close entrance two of the centre.
The centre’s marketing manager Philisiwe Mtsali said the centre was currently being renovated and the centre management had requested all tenants to be extremely vigilant and to immediately report any suspicious individuals to the centre security. She added that it was important that all staff knew the security procedures and that the panic alarms were functioning, as criminals might take advantage of the situation.
“The centre management will ensure the safety and security of customers and tenants by heightening the presence of security in the mall including undercover security and electronic surveillance particularly during the construction period.” According to Mtsali, the centre management is communicating with the police to establish whether there is any patterns or links between the robberies.
Linden Police Station spokesperson Constable Ndivhuwo Carol Mulamu said, “The police are always on the lookout for suspicious activities happening in the area. They will be looking into additional police presence in the form of regular patrols in and around the centre.
“She added no arrests have been made in connection with any of the business robberies in the area. The police are working very hard in investigating the cases.”
