Business robbery
Doncaster Road, Claremont, Cape Town
20/12/2009 at 03:00 Pm
This incident was reported by anonymous
Incident number #417 details:
Injured suspect 'just kept on coming'
A suspected armed robber fleeing from the crime scene at Kenilworth Centre "just wouldn't fall down" despite being hit by two bullets, said a metro police officer.
"He kept coming at us, even after we shot him," said the officer, who would not be named.
Yesterday's drama unfolded at about 3pm in a packed Kenilworth Centre.
One suspect was seen pulling out a handgun in Checkers and aiming it at Michelle Alexander, a Checkers employee, demanding that she hand over a bag of coins, witnesses say.
Alexander called out to security but before they could respond, the suspect shot her, seriously wounding her.
Police spokesman Inspector November Filander said the man, described as big and bulky, had grabbed the bag and fled on foot with an accomplice.
The mall's security staff had chased the two, who had split up by then, but were unable to stop them.
Instead, the guards had flagged down a metro police vehicle, on a routine patrol.
"One of the robbers ran towards the metro police car and shot at them," said Filander.
The officers had jumped out of their car and shot back, wounding him at least twice. But the robber had "kept coming at us", said one officer.
His partner, a sergeant, had been shot in the left hand.
The suspect had then jumped into the metro police vehicle, which was still idling, and driven off.
Officers had given chase, following the suspect to the Pooke se Bos informal settlement in Athlone.
The suspect had continued to shoot during the high-speed chase.
Filander said the badly injured man had eventually stopped shooting when his gun jammed and he had collapsed. He was arrested and taken to hospital.
Police responding to the robbery found a 9mm handgun in the mall parking lot, which they believe belonged to the second suspect. He has not been caught.
Alexander's mother, Joy, said today that her daughter had undergone a three-hour operation to stop internal bleeding and to remove her spleen.
She said a doctor had told her the bullet had hit her daughter's spine, spleen and part of her liver.
Alexander was still heavily sedated this morning.
Community Safety MEC Lennit Max said that although police could not be stationed at malls, they would not hesitate when called upon by the public.
Kenilworth Centre management declined to comment. - Additional reporting by Ella Smook
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