A heavily armed gang of five men tried to rob the Wild Coast Sun casino at the weekend, the Sun International resort said on Monday.
The gunmen entered the casino at 12.45am on Sunday and forced casino patrons and staff to lie on the floor, Wild Coast Sun general manager Alec McMath said in a statement on Monday.
Two of the robbers tried unsuccessfully to break into the cash desk, said McMath, who was locked in a meeting over the incident with security staff for most of Monday.
”On exiting the casino, the gang encountered a member of the resort’s armed-response unit and shots were exchanged,” he said in the statement. ”No patrons or staff of the casino were hurt during the two-minute attempted robbery.”
No arrests have yet been made.
Tourist Seelan Govender, of Phoenix, Durban, told the Mercury newspaper that a woman in his party was pistol-whipped during the incident and that members of the group were robbed of R15 000 and personal belongings.
The police could not immediately be reached for comment. — Sapa