Centurion teenager attacked, robbed
"The two other robbers returned. They picked me up and dragged me while assaulting me. At that point, I had no will left to fight."
A teenage boy was ambushed and beaten for his cellphone by a group of men in Bernini Street recently in Centurion.
“I sensed somebody walking up slowly behind me, I then immediately knew they wanted to try something,” victim Corné Schoorman (15) told Rekord the day after the ambush.
Schoorman said the moment he tried to put his phone away, two robbers ran towards him and grabbed the phone from his hand.
Schoorman said ‘adrenaline kicked in’ and he pursued the robbers and tackled them to the ground.
“I grabbed my phone and put it in my pocket and tried to run away.”
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However, a third robber tackled Schoorman before he could get away.
“The two other robbers returned. They picked me up and dragged me while assaulting me. At that point, I had no will left to fight.”
Schoorman used his ‘last energy’ to throw one last punch before the robbers fled the scene. He managed to hold onto his cellphone and contacted his family. His big brother came to fetch him. His mother, Zanel Schuurman said she thanked God he wasn’t stabbed. Lyttelton CPF Sector 1 chairman Hugo Erasmus warned residents to be careful while walking, running and cycling in the area.
Sector 1 covers Zwartkop, Centurion CBD and Die Hoewes.
“Be aware of your surroundings. If you have to walk somewhere, do not walk alone,” Erasmus said.
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“If you are walking with headphones on, always have one earplug out, so that you can hear what is going on around you.”
Erasmus further said when walking it is important to minimise the valuables you carry with you and not to flaunt your cellphone or any item that may be perceived to be expensive. Erasmus has urged the community to report any suspicious activity or emergency to the Lyttelton CPF 24/7 emergency number on 086-157-1911.
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