A man and his son were shot and wounded by armed robbers at their home in Lichtenburg in the North West on Thursday morning, paramedics said.Netcare 911 spokesman Mark Stokoe said it appeared as though four robbers gained entry through an open gate while one waited in a getaway car.
"The man's wife heard dogs barking and when she opened the back door to investigate, the robbers pushed her aside."
"She screamed and her husband and son came running, during which they were both shot on the chest," said Stokoe.
The attackers demanded she open the safe. However, when she told them there was no safe they told her she was lying because they had broken into the house a short while before and knew there was a safe.
Stokoe said the family owned a business which they ran on the premises.
The men got into the walk-in safe and emptied it, taking with them "a combination of rifles", jewellery and an undisclosed amount of cash, he said.
When paramedics arrived at the scene, they found the woman's husband and her son lying in a pool of blood, both in a critical condition.
"Treatment and stabilisation was carried out at the scene of the crime before the patients were taken to a private facility in Klerksdorp," he said.
It turned out there had previously been an attempted robbery at the family's home when about eight used grinding discs had been found on scene, but the robbers had been unable to cut into the safe.
Stokoe said the father, who suffered extensive internal injuries, was out of theatre by late Thursday afternoon.
"The bullet was not removed. It will be removed during a secondary procedure," he said.
The man's son was in a serious but more satisfactory condition.
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Source : Sapa /hr/ks   Â
Date : 19 Mar 2009 17:13
