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Pretoria - A Centurion businesswoman has told of her encounter with a gang of female robbers alleged to be terrorising Pretoria residents.
Marthie Stevens, who runs an upholstery business from her house, believed the gang had targeted her house two weeks ago, but due to the number of people in the yard, the plan was foiled.
"I was working in the house while one of my helpers was washing the car outside. One woman approached the gate and asked him if there were people in the house," she said.
Not knowing who the woman at the gate was, helper Aaron Sechlothlo went inside the house to inform Stevens of the visitor.
She said she went outside, thinking they wanted information regarding upholstering.
"I then told them that [the] person who does the work was not around. One of them asked to use a toilet," she said.
Stevens told the woman to use the outside bathroom. To her amazement, two others jumped out of the grey VW car. Then the woman said she wanted to use the one in the house.
"She said the one outside was filthy and wanted to use the house toilet. The pregnant woman then asked for a toilet as well, but I told her to wait for the other one to finish," said Stevens.
The pregnant women then allegedly started fiddling with cupboards and Steven told her to stop.
She then told them to leave her yard.
'An uneasy feeling'
"I had an uneasy feeling about them. The first one had a big bag... I didn't know what it was for," she said, adding that the recent police statement regarding the modus operandi of a female gang of robbers had triggered an alarm for her.
On Tuesday, police released a statement warning residents to be on the lookout for the gang that was allegedly involved in a spate of house robberies in Pretoria Moot, Villieria and Brooklyn.
Police spokesperson Captain Colette Weilbach said the group gained entrance to the house by asking to use the bathroom.
"Last week a 57-year-old domestic worker from Menlo Park was approached by four women in a silver-coloured vehicle while she was watering the garden. Two of the women asked to use the bathroom.
"She directed them to the outer building bathroom. When they returned, she opened the gate for them and the other two women entered," she said.
Weilbach added that no arrests had been, but that more people had come forward with information about the gang.
"Today [Wednesday] I received calls from people in Randburg and Nylstroom claiming people with the same modus operandi had approached their house," said Weilbach.
She said investigations were continuing.
