Three Safeguard Security Guns Taken By Robbers In US$4 Million Ecobank Robbery
The armed robbers who targeted a Safeguard Security cash-in-transit team at an Ecobank branch in Bulawayo on Thursday and went away with US$4 million not only disarmed the security personnel but also made off with three firearms belonging to the company.
The stolen weapons include two pistols and a shotgun, raising concerns among police that these firearms could be used in future armed robberies.
Assistant Inspector Nomalanga Msebele, the acting spokesperson for the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) in Bulawayo Province, confirmed this alarming development. She said (via the Chronicle):
Three of the Cash in Transit details were armed with a shotgun, which had two rounds of ammunition, a pistol (make and type unknown) with ten rounds and a Canik 9mm pistol with five rounds.
The accused persons approached the Cash in Transit team and assaulted the details with the butt of AK 47 rifles they were carrying and disarmed the security team.
The accused ordered the security team to lie down on their stomachs and warned them against raising any alarm.
The security team complied and the accused persons took away their guns. The accused persons dragged three trunks that had cash, loaded them into a gate away vehicle and drove off at high speed.
The accused persons also took away the three guns which they had taken from the security team.
CCTV footage of the heist, which took just one minute and 49 seconds to complete, has emerged. However, reports indicate that while the getaway car was captured on camera, the license plates shown belong to a Mazda Demio, not the Ford Ranger single cab used in the crime.
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