Shop assistant disarms and ‘arrests’ 62-year-old gun-toting robber

A brave shop assistant intervened in an armed robbery in Gqeberha, Eastern Cape on Thursday morning, 31 March. One of the two suspects escaped but the other finds himself behind bars.

SHOP ASSISTANT ARRESTS ROBBER

South African Police Service (SAPS) spokesperson Captain Andre Beetge said two men entered an electrical business in Mkombe Street, Ikamvelihle and demanded cash and vehicle keys. One of the suspects was armed.

“The brave shop assistant engaged in a struggle with the suspect with the firearm and managed to subdue him and take his firearm,” said Beetge.

The other suspect grabbed the vehicle keys and made an escape. He sped away in a stolen Ford Icon.

The Ikamvelihle SAPS were summoned to the scene and a 62-year-old suspect and the firearm were handed over.

The 9mm Norinco pistol had four bullets. Beetge said the firearm will be sent for ballistic analysis and forensic testing to determine if it was used in any other crimes.

The arrested suspect will appear before the Motherwell Magistrate’s Court on Monday, 4 April on charges of illegal possession of a firearm and business robbery.

Meanwhile, his accomplice is still at large and the police are on the lookout for a white Ford Icon bearing a license plate that reads JTD 903 EC.

The acting Nelson Mandela Bay District Commissioner, Brigadier Luntu Ngubelanga, said he was grateful to the shop assistant for tackling and apprehending the suspect.

However, he cautioned members of the public against such actions, saying, “Tackling and arresting suspects especially those that are armed must only be done if the arresting person is fully confident that he/she can make such an arrest without endangering their own or other’s lives in the process. The protection of life must be first and foremost when confronting armed criminals.”