The Johannesburg Organised Crime Unit is investigating the theft of R1-million worth of electronic equipment from the offices of the Mail & Guardian on Saturday night. About ten men armed with rifles tied-up guards at the newspaper’s premises and then loaded about 40 almost-new Apple computers into a vehicle and fled the office park in Milpark, Johannesburg.
Johannesburg police spokesperson Constable Sefako Xaba confirmed the story and told the Mail & Guardian Online that it had been a “very quick” job.
He said the men had known “where everything was”.
Xaba also speculated that someone may have informed the gang that the company had recently bought new computers.
Chief Operations Officer Hoosain Karjieker said on Sunday morning that the heavily-armed gang had first overpowered the guard at the gate to the Media Mill office complex abetween 1pm and 2pm and then forced him to open the Mail & Guardian office.
The men then overpowered another guard in the office and tied the men up with shoelaces and a cord in the kitchen.
“They then helped themselves to our new E-Macs, G5s, photocopiers and fax machines,” said Karjieker.
“We’re shocked,” he said, adding that there were back-up systems in place.
Xaba said the guards had heard the men taking the equipment out of the building and then the sound of a vehicle being driven away.
One of the men managed to find a pair of scissors and cut himself loose and then freed his colleague and raised the alarm.
The value of the stolen goods is estimated to be about R1-million.
Xaba said it was not known in what vehicle the thieves had escaped in.
The security guards were not injured during the robbery.
Xaba said the Johannesburg Organised Crime Unit is investigating the case.
Staffers at the Mail & Guardian Online were on Monday morning either working remotely from their home PCs or at the office via their laptops.
“They even took the coffee machine,” said one forlorn staff member.
Riaan Wolmarans, the Mail & Guardian Online‘s chief sub-editor said: “It’s so strange to see all the empty desks. People are just sitting around, looking lost.”
Russell Benjamin, from the production department at the Mail & Guardian, said he felt heart-sore for the company.
“It’s not a nice feeling,” he said.