Eyewitness recalls Sunday robbery

MAMELLO SEBATANE
Maseru – Following the sensational attempted armed robbery that took place yesterday at a meat retailer along Kingsway, a direct witness who works at the shop said she became suspicious of the first three suspects as soon as they got in the shop.
She refused to be identified fearing possible reprisals from the criminals since five out of six of them are yet to be found.
“Just after 2pm, three men entered the store along with a few customers, but I kept my eyes on them for some time because they looked very suspicious, it looked like they were communicating in a coded way,” she said.
She said she alerted one of her colleagues of her suspicion and the two decided to go outside leaving the suspects and some staff members in the shop.
“We stood by the entrance, one suspect took an item off the shelves and attempted to pay, and then I spoke from outside warning the cashier telling her ‘we do not have enough change’ as a way to make her not open the till,” she explained.
“In no time I felt a pat on my shoulder and heard a voice ordering me back into the shop if I did not want to die,” she recalled.
She said she panicked and screamed calling out for help from a security guard at a nearby shop.
“I started hearing gunshots soon after that. That is when the shootout broke out and the security guard was shot dead on the spot. I somehow managed to escape the danger,” she said.
Police spokesperson Senior Superintendent, Mpiti Mopeli, said there were six suspects at the scene and only one of them has been apprehended so far with the rest at large as investigations continue.