Gqeberha School Learners, Parents and Teachers Robbed at Gunpoint

• An award ceremony in Gqeberha in the Eastern Cape was disrupted when armed thugs stormed the school
• The suspects fired their guns and forced the victims to lie on the ground while they robbed them of their items
• Briefly News spoke to SAPS spokesperson in the Eastern Cape about the case's progress
• They fled the scene, and some South Africans were taken aback by the incident, calling for them to be arrested

Tebogo Mokwena, a Briefly News current affairs journalist in Johannesburg, South Africa, covered police investigations and court cases at Daily Sun for over three years.

GQEBERHA, EASTERN CAPE — A group of thugs disrupted an award-giving ceremony at a school in Motherwell in Gqeberha in the Eastern Cape and robbed the parents, teachers and learners.

Parents, teachers and learners robbed at Eastern Cape school

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SowetanLIVE reported that four armed men stormed into a church where the learners, teachers and parents gathered for the academic prize-giving ceremony. The joyous occasion was disrupted when the thugs entered the building.

They instructed the victims to lie down on the floor. They then robbed them of 30 cell phones and two vehicles. They also took a laptop, cell phones and sound equipment from one of the cars before abandoning both. Fortunately, nobody was injured during the incident, and the police are investigating.

SAPS speaks to Briefly News

Briefly News spoke to Eastern Cape SAPS spokesperson Lieutenant-Colonel Siphokazi Mawisa.

"No arrests have been made. A police investigation is underway," she said.

Netizens disturbed by the crime

Netizens on Facebook who commented were shaken.

Moshibudi Caroline said:

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"Maybe the minister of police must take the SAPS department again back to basics like posting the police at every school."

Mzwa Ndile said:

"Nothing is safe in Port Elizabeth, not even churches."

Nonthaithethwa Tau said:

"Haibo!"

Durban school teachers robbed in broad daylight

In a similar incident, Briefly News reported that teachers at a Kwa Mashu school in Durban, KwaZulu-Natalo, were victims of a crime.

Gunmen stormed the school and robbed the teachers of their cell phones and clothing. They also forced the teachers to empty their bank accounts. The province's Department of Education condemned the incident.

South Africans called for security to be beefed up in schools. Some complained that crime targeting schools was getting worse and called the education department to ensure that criminals did not threaten teachers' lives.

Source: Briefly News