CHAOS erupted during a quiet day at a mall in Durban on Friday (15 January).
This comes after a group of men broke into a jewellery store in Gateway Shopping Centre in Umhlanga, north of Durban.
Shoppers were seen ducking for cover trying to save their lives as they heard the loud noise of glass breaking.
A shopper told Daily Sun she had gone to buy stationery at the mall.
She said when she walked pass the jewellery store, she saw a group of men storming into the store.
“I then ducked for cover and crawled to a much safer area. Other people around me also ducked for cover. It was like a movie,” she said.
Another shopper said she was so terrified when heard the loud noise that she decided to leave the mall immediately.
“I had just arrived but I decided to go back to my car and leave immediately as I was terrified,” she said.
Reaction Unit South Africa spokesman Prem Balram said they received a call from a shopper reporting shots being fired at the mall.
“Reaction officers were dispatched to the scene and on arrival found several private security companies and police in attendance,” he said.
“It is believed that the robbers fled in a Toyota Corolla with jewellery stolen from the business,” he said.
KZN police spokeswoman Colonel Thembeka Mbele said it’s alleged the group of armed men broke the glass door and entered the jewellery store at a shopping mall and made off with an undisclosed amount of cash and jewellery.
"They fled the scene in their getaway vehicle which was later found abandoned on the M25 in the Greenwood Park area near the service station. No injuries have been reported," said Mbele.
Mbele said a case of robbery was opened at the Durban North Police Station for investigation.
