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Pinetown, South Africa – Chaos erupted in broad daylight. Videos sweeping across WhatsApp groups and TikTok this afternoon show masked gunmen storming a busy shopping centre car park, guns drawn, barking orders while terrified shoppers freeze behind their phones.
One clip, already viewed more than 300,000 times, captures the moment five heavily armed robbers surround a delivery trolley stacked high with boxes. Without a word, they rip the parcels open, stuffing brand-new cellphones into black bags before hurling them into the back of a waiting white double-cab bakkie.
Another video, even more chilling, shows a marked Metro Police vehicle slowly cruising past the robbery in full swing. A robber casually waves an assault rifle at the patrol car. The officer inside raises a hand in surrender and keeps driving. The robbers never flinch.
Within minutes the gang speeds off, leaving behind a stunned security guard, two shaken courier drivers, and hundreds of shoppers who thought Saturday errands were safe.
It was only hours later that the full picture emerged.
Pinetown police spokesperson Captain Jennifer Naidu confirmed a high-value armed robbery took place shortly after 2 pm outside the Pinecrest Shopping Centre on Josiah Gumede Road.
“A courier team had just arrived to deliver cellular devices to several stores inside the mall,” Naidu said. “They were being escorted by an armed security officer when approximately five suspects ambushed them.”
The robbers, armed with handguns and at least one rifle, threatened the guard and the delivery staff at gunpoint. They made off with dozens of the latest smartphones – exact models and value still being calculated – and, in a brazen twist, disarmed the security officer and took his service pistol.
Remarkably, no shots were fired. No one was injured. Yet the ease of the heist has sent shockwaves through the community.
Witnesses described the robbers as calm and professional. One shopper who filmed from the upper parking deck told Highway Mail: “They weren’t rushing. It was like they knew exactly where the cameras were blind and how long they had.”
In the Metro Police footage now circulating, the patrol car’s slow drive-by has sparked outrage online. Questions are already swirling: Why did the officers not engage? Were they alone? Did they call for backup?
Durban Metro Police have yet to comment officially, saying only that the matter “forms part of an active investigation”.
The white getaway vehicle, believed to be a Toyota Hilux or similar, was later recovered abandoned in nearby New Germany, torched. Forensic teams spent the evening combing the wreckage.
Pinecrest management remained tight-lipped. An enquiry sent by Highway Mail went unanswered by publication time, but security at the centre was visibly heavier by late afternoon, with private armed response units now patrolling entrances.
This is not the first time courier teams have been targeted in KwaZulu-Natal. Last month three similar “follow-home” robberies hit Umhlanga and Durban North, with losses running into millions of rands. Police suspect the same syndicate may be expanding its reach.
Naidu urged the public to stay alert.
“These criminals watch patterns. They know when deliveries happen. Shoppers and staff must report anything suspicious immediately.”
She provided emergency numbers: Radio Control 10111, or the direct Pinetown lines 082 557 8282, 031 325 6794 and 031 325 6795.
As night fell over Pinetown, parents collected children early from weekend activities, and traders closed shutters long before usual knocking-off time.
What started as routine Saturday shopping ended with a city on edge – and a stark reminder that even in the middle of the day, surrounded by hundreds of people, no one is untouchable.
A case of business robbery has been opened. Detectives from the provincial organised crime unit have taken over the hunt.
The robbers are still out there. And the phones they stole today will likely be on the black market by tomorrow morning.
