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2 ATMs hit by 20-man gang
17/04/2008 09:31 - (SA)
Johannesburg - Two ATMS, one in Boksburg North and one in Brakpan, were bombed early on Thursday morning by gangs of about twenty people, Gauteng police said.
Brakpan police spokesperson Captain Petros Mabuza said an ATM at the Dalview Shell garage was blown up after about twenty people held up garage staff at about 01:30 on Thursday.
He said about twenty people arrived in five cars at the garage near Carnival City and held up four people at gunpoint who were at the garage.
They then bombed the ATM and fled with an undisclosed amount of money.
Nothing else was taken from the garage or its 24-hour shop.
Mabuza said one of the vehicles used during the bombing was later recovered at Zonkesizwe with a firearm inside.
The car, a Nissan 4x4, was tracked down by police as having been stolen in January in Sophiatown.
No arrests have been made.
Boksburg police spokesperson Sasa Lengene said at almost the same time on Thursday a Nedbank ATM at a garage in Impala Park was also bombed.
She said a maroon, a white, a silver and a dark green BMW, as well as an Opel Corsa and double cab vehicle arrived at the garage, filled with occupants.
The balaclava-wearing robbers got out and ordered the two garage attendants to lie down in the kiosk.
One of the attendants said a robber from the maroon BMW had a AK47.
They took one of the attendant's cellphones and after that bombed the ATM.
Lengene said the robbers were not able to take all the money in the ATM box and so police were able to recover some of it.
She said the two bombings appeared to be linked as the Nissan 4x4 recovered at Zonkesizwe was believed to be the same double cab seen at the scene of the Boksburg North bombing.
The robbers apparently fled in the direction of Katlehong.
Lengene said ATM bombings were on the rise.
"Cash heists are getting lower and ATM bombings are becoming higher," she said.
- SAPA
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