Shop owner, robber shot dead
2008-08-27 14:20
Durban - A robber and a shop owner were shot dead during an armed robbery at a jewellery store in Durban's city centre on Wednesday, KwaZulu-Natal police said.
The robber was part of a gang that stormed into Pyramid Jewellers on Victoria Street after 09:00 and held up staff at gunpoint.
Police spokesperson Inspector Michael Read said two suspects accosted staff while they were opening the shop, and pushed them inside.
"The shop owner was already inside and when he saw what was happening he grabbed his firearm. There was an exchange of gunfire between himself and the robbers."
The owner, Pat Pather, 64, was shot twice in the hand and once in the chest. He died later in hospital. Pather managed to shoot and kill one of the robbers. The police's flying squad arrested a second man near the Workshop complex in Durban.
Read said a firearm had been confiscated and cases of murder and attempted armed robbery opened.
- SAPA