Six people were arrested following a robbery and shootout at Centurion Mall near Pretoria on Friday morning, Gauteng police said.
“In a swift reaction, Lyttelton sector members averted a cellular shop robbery and stopped a Quantum which was escaping with smartphones stolen from a cellular shop at Centurion Mall today,” Lt-Gen Lesetja Mothiba said.
“As a result, six suspects were arrested, three firearms and two bags full of cellular phones were recovered.”
Police in the area serving a protection order heard over police radio about the robbery, and saw the Quantum the robbers were using and ordered them to stop.
“The driver of the Quantum stopped and one of the suspects pulled out a firearm and tried to shoot at the police. However, he and another suspect were shot and injured,” said Mothiba.
“The suspects had earlier held up staff at a Vodacom cellular shop at Centurion Mall. They then forced the employees to load the phones in two bags and later locked everybody including customers in a back office.”
However, the manager of the shop had a spare key, unlocked the back office and called police.
“The suspects will soon appear in court facing business robbery, [and] possession of suspected stolen property [charges],” Mothiba said. — Sapa