By KASONDE KASONDE? –
THREE masked robbers, armed with an AK-47 rifle, yesterday stormed?Kabwe’s Petro Tech filling station in broad daylight and stole an?undisclosed amount of money.
The filling station is situated in the town centre near the railway?crossing along the Great North Road.
The robbers forced their way into the manager’s office around 09:00?hours and ordered him to surrender the money.
At this point, the manager obliged and surrendered the money which had been stored in?one of the office drawers.
The attack comes after similar attacks on other businesses in the?district in recent months, where bandits snatched money.??An eye witness, Frank Chinyeya, said as he was delivering a box of?chicks to the manager in his office, three men wearing masks entered?the office.
Mr Chinyeya said the three men ordered the manager to give them the?money that was in the office, and that they swiftly retreated after?they were handed the cash.
Another witness said as he was crossing the road, he saw three masked?men carrying a gun, enter one of the offices at the filling station and shortly leave in a car that had parked near the filling station.
The security guard at the filling station said everything happened fast and that he could not explain what had transpired.
Central Province Police chief Standwell Lungu confirmed the incident and said a hunt for the three had been launched.
The station manager was not immediately available, as he was still giving statements at the Police station.??Mr Lungu said statements recorded from witnesses, indicated that the three men were armed with an AK-47.
Meanwhile, an 11-year-old girl of Makwati Township in Kabwe has been defiled by a man of the same area.
Mr Lungu said the incident happened on Saturday and the suspect, Lemme?Chanda was on the run.