Five armed robbers arrested as police swoop

A group of five armed people, including a woman, that allegedly robbed two petrol stations in two different Eastern Cape towns in the early hours of this morning, were arrested after a swift reaction by police and security personnel.

The group consisting of four men and a woman, were arrested near Border Post, outside King William’s Town, after they allegedly robbed a local petrol station and later another one in Stutterheim.

They were not so lucky as all their loot taken from both petrol stations, including an undisclosed amount of cash, cellphones, a tablet and cigarettes, were recovered during their arrest. This was confirmed yesterday by King William’s Town police spokeswoman Lieutenant Siphokazi Mawisa who also revealed that one firearm was recovered during the joint arrest.

Red Alert Security Services regional manager Brett Harvey yesterday said the group is believed to have started their robbery spree at an Engen garage in King, where they held staff at gunpoint and even assaulted one with a firearm.

“Around 10.16pm we received a panic signal from the garage in King and when our armed response team arrived at the scene, the robbers had already fled.

“We were told that they took cellphones, cash and even assaulted one employee whom they bashed in the head with the firearm. We were then given a description of the getaway vehicle, a maroon Cadet,” Harvey said.

Hours later, at 1.24am this  morning, another panic signal was received by the same security company, this time from a petrol station in Stutterheim.