Battery ‘thief’ arrested in shootout
Residents say several shots we fired by police as the man was fleeing from the scene.
The police have been criticised for “shooting randomly” after a stray bullet landed on a resident’s roof in Pretoria West.
It is believed the police fired several shots at fleeing robbers on Monday night.
The men were on the run after trying to rob a warehouse in Vom Hagen Street around 20:00, and the police and AfriForum neighbourhood watch were trying to intercept them.
Emalda Kriel, who lives near the warehouse, said one bullet hit her roof.
“As I was getting out of my car, I heard two shots being fired nearby. Moments later, I saw something flash in front of my eyes and hit the roof of my house,” she said.
“I was so terrified and I told my kids to go inside the house. I did not know what was going on.”
Kriel said a neighbour, Eric Cordier, found the bullet that had hit her home.
“Eric came to my house and told me what was going on. I’m too scared to even go outside at the moment.”
“Why do police just randomly fire shots without aiming properly? If I wasn’t near my car, I believe the bullet could have hit me and I need to know from the police what the chances are of this happening again.”
AfriForum branch chairperson Francois Oberholzer said his team had received a call from the warehouse about the two men trying to rob the place.
“When we arrived at the scene, two police vans were already at the scene,” he said.
“A few minutes later, we saw two men jumping off the walls and making an escape. We managed to assist the police and arrested one while the other got away.”
“Pretoria West police and other units were very fast on [quick to] the scene. Thanks to them for the good work.”
Oberholzer could not confirm if the police fired at the suspected robbers.
According to residents, the two men steal car batteries around Pretoria West.
“We have had this problem for a while,” said Oberholzer.
“Car battery theft is a common problem around the west. Car dealerships have to remove batteries to avoid being victims.”
We urge residents to be vigilant of this modus operandi. The best thing [to do] is remove your battery every night.”
“Police spokesperson Captain Bonginkosi Msimango said he was not aware of the incident.
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