With the recent cash van bombings in KwaZulu-Natal, companies, communities and especially guards, whose role it is to deter and prevent criminals from accessing the money, are on edge.
On Thursday night, October 5, another cash-carrying truck was attacked and bombed, this one on the N2, close to Queen Nandi Drive.
Upon seeing this, other motorists fled for their safety. A white Hilux reportedly pulled alongside the vehicle is it passed the M25, and its passengers opened fire.
*Ntando Mtolo, 44, has worked as a cash van guard for over 16 years. The Durban resident recently works for Fidelity but has been employed by other companies.
He described his work as having great risk, as he and his colleagues can find themselves in danger each and every time they go out on the job. That’s because criminal syndicates make it their job to prey on cash vans to get their hands on the money.
Mtolo said he’d been a victim of several heists. He has sustained wounds from multiple gunshots and once has to spend three months in hospital as a result.
Mtolo suspects that the recent bombings are perpetrated by individuals who possess knowledge of what the job entails, and use it for their own gain. He went on to say that this includes the police and even military personnel.
“We are faced with these threats each and every day. To make matters worse, currently there is no protection against the trucks from getting bombed. The police and ambulances also often arrive late,” said Mtolo.
He said all such guards are extremely vulnerable and work under stress. “I once watched three of my colleagues die before my eyes in a heist.”
Mtolo went on to say that even though they carry guns, if they are under attack, they cannot shoot when there are pedestrians or motorists that could get struck.
He explained that he was once attacked at Durban’s Dr Pixley KaSeme Street, formerly West Street, while they were delivering money to a store.
*Name changed for privacy.
IOL