Two alleged gunmen were shot dead and a third was seriously wounded during a foiled robbery at the Ellis Park Stadium in Johannesburg shortly after the Lions-Western Province Currie Cup match on Saturday, police said.
Superintendent Chris Wilken said the incident occurred about 7pm when three men entered a cooldrinks outlet in the stadium and forced the four staff members of the ABI Coca Cola distributing company into a walk-in freezer at gunpoint before they ransacked the place for money.
Police said one of the staffers eventually managed to get out of the freezer, drew his own firearm and fired several shots, hitting two of the attackers who died instantly.
The third man fled but soon after a man — believed to be the accomplice of the two — was found by police with a gunshot wound to the chest around Voorhout and Gouws Streets about two blocks away from the stadium. He was rushed to the Rand Clinic under police escort where he is in a serious, but stable condition.
Wilkens said police confiscated a Browning firearm with serial numbers filed off, as well as a cellphone and a wallet belonging to one of the staff members. Ellispark representative Madelain Roscher pointed out in a statement that neither the Ellispark Stadium personnel nor its contractors were involved in the incident. Investigations are underway. – Sapa