Robbers hit bank ‘next door’ to cop shop
Cars parked outside Greytown's Absa Bank were left riddled with bulletsafter a gun battle between security staff and about six robbers. Picture: Nthuthuko Mdletshe Cars parked outside Greytown's Absa Bank were left riddled with bulletsafter a gun battle between security staff and about six robbers. Picture: Nthuthuko Mdletshe
Durban -
Six gunmen snatched “millions” from under the noses of Greytown police on Thursday following a fierce gun battle outside the Absa bank.
The bank is right next door to the town’s police station and Thursday’s cash heist was the third in the town since late last year, say locals.
Cars were riddled with bullet holes and one robber was wounded.
Ahmed Shaikh, the chairman of the town’s business chamber and speaker at the municipality, described the robbery as “brazen”.
“The police station is less than 10m away. They are right next door,” he said.
He suggested that the police were not proactive.
“This is the second heist we have had in the town this year. Standard Bank was robbed not so long ago. This is the second time for Absa bank. They were robbed last year. This time these guys got away with a whole trolley-load of money. It was millions of rand.
“We really don’t need this in our town,” he said.
Ntuthuko Mdletshe, a local who arrived at the bank as the scene unfolded, said the gunmen stormed security personnel in the process of transferring cash from the bank to their armoured vehicle.
“They had the money on one of those trolley things.
“These guys just came at them. I think there were six, but there could have been more in the street.”
The police arrived 10 minutes after the incident, said Mdletshe.
“They told me those guys used AK47 rifles. There were bullets everywhere.”
He said one gunman was wounded.
“The others came back for him. They chucked the money into the car and got away.”
Mdletshe said it was fortunate that yesterday was a quiet day in the town.
“There are three busy days in Greytown. Pension pay-out, pay day and Fridays. If this had happened on one of those days someone would have died. It was really bad,” he said.
Shaikh said security staff seemed “too relaxed” when they carried the money from the bank to the armoured vehicle. “They didn’t really hide it. It was all on this trolley.”
SAPS spokesman Thulani Zwane confirmed that a case of armed robbery was opened at the Greytown police station on Thursday.
“A group of suspects opened fire on the security guards who went there to collect cash from the bank. The security guards returned fire. The suspects took an undisclosed amount of cash before they fled in their own getaway vehicle. No arrests have been made,” he said.
While Zwane declined to confirm whether any robbers were wounded, he said the getaway vehicle was found in the “Greytown area” and there was blood in the car.
Spokesman for Absa Bank, Dante Mashile, said he was unaware of the heist.
The Mercury