Three robberies by thugs pretending to be buyers

THREE businesses in Port Elizabeth were robbed yesterday – two within an hour – by men who pretended to be customers before holding up the staff at gunpoint. The first robbery occurred at about 3am when two men robbed a Total fuel station in Grahamstown Road. Two men had gone into the fuel station’s 24-hour shop as would-be customers before pointing a firearm at the teller, police spokesman Warrant Officer Alwin Labans said. “The men stole packets of cigarettes and money before fleeing from the store. The robbers fled in a white car,” Labans said. Then, between 10am and 11am, two other businesses were robbed. Atlas Security’s Monty Montgomery said the Rio Cafe in Commercial Road had been robbed at about 10am by two men pretending to buy bread. “They were at the counter paying for the bread,” Montgomery said. “As the teller opened the till, one of the men pulled out a firearm and jumped over the counter. The men stole money from the till as well as other items before fleeing,” he said.

Within half an hour of the Rio Cafe drama, Sea Cellar Liquors in Mansions Avenue, Humewood, was robbed. “This time, four suspects entered the shop pretending to be customers,” Montgomery said. “They all ambled around for a while before holding the staff at gunpoint and stealing bottles of expensive liquor. “The four men were fairly organised and had a white getaway car parked outside.” The authorities are asking store owners to be vigilant and alert them when suspicious people are noticed inside their shops. “The common denominator in all these robberies is that the suspects first walk around inside the shops,” Montgomery said. “They assess who is working, how many staff are in the shop and what the risk is of getting caught.” The police were investigating the robberies and by late yesterday no arrests had been made.