- Two people were robbed while depositing cash into an ATM at Clifton Place in Durban.
- One of the victims opened fire on the robbers as they fled the scene.
- The robbers returned fire before making their getaway in two separate vehicles.
On Monday, two people were robbed of an undisclosed amount of cash while depositing money into an ATM at Clifton Place, next to Durban's Musgrave Centre.
The incident took place around 11:00.
Video footage captured the robbers fleeing from the centre, while one of the victims opened fire.
According to a police statement, one victim was accosted at gunpoint by two unknown men who demanded the cash being deposited into the ATM. Another victim depositing cash was also held up and robbed by other suspects.
"The first victim then drew his firearm and pointed it at the suspects who then fled the scene. A gun battle ensued. The suspects then fired at customers at the three ATM sites," police spokesperson Colonel Thembeka Mbele said in a statement.
This particular criminal activity has been termed "knocking" - when someone goes to the bank to either withdraw or deposit money and then gets "knocked" by robbers before or after, News24 reporter Jeff Wicks explained.
The robbers fled the scene in two separate vehicles with unknown registration numbers.
"These vehicles were parked outside the bank in Clifton Place. The vehicles fled in unknown directions," Mbele said.
According to the statement, no one was injured, but stray bullets damaged the nearby premises.
"A glass partitioning and a computer monitor was damaged," Mbele said.
A case of armed robbery was opened at the Berea police station for further investigation.
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