Closed-circuit television cameras gave police the upper hand in a dramatic car chase and shoot-out in Durban on Friday, in which eight men were killed.
CCTV surveillance helped police get into the chase so quickly that the suspected robbers had nowhere to run.
Police and forensic experts are still sifting through the evidence, but there are early indications that one of the men shot may not have been part of the gang of robbers who hit Chicago Meats in Denis Hurley (Queen) Street on Friday morning, making off with R300 000.
The Sunday Tribune has had sight of the CCTV footage, which shows seven armed robbers in the getaway vehicle - but eight men were shot dead 20 minutes after the crime was committed.
Seven men could be clearly seen at the butchery and in the Corsa bakkie as they sped off, but at the final crime scene, eight men were found dead.
One of the dead men was wearing safety boots, at odds with the shoes the other robbers were wearing. The man was also clutching what looked like a black work bag.
The stolen money was put into black boxes and butchery bags.
SAPS Dir Johan Booysen of the Organised Crime Unit said eight men had been shot dead, and at this stage they were investigating the identity of all eight.
"We are still trying to determine who's who. On the total number of men involved, one cannot go purely on the CCTV footage because there are normally people outside in a getaway vehicle, or they could have swopped vehicles.
We are investigating the profile of each man who was shot," he said.
As standard procedure, Booysen said the Independent Complaints Directorate was investigating the shooting.
The cameras, strategically placed around the city, recorded in dramatic detail the movements of a group of armed robbers from the moment they left the scene of the crime until minutes before they died in a hail of police bullets.
Police monitoring the cameras were able to give their colleagues on the ground running updates of the suspects' movements, enabling them to catch up with them in double-quick time.
The action began at 8am on Friday when armed men entered Chicago Meats.
Owner Dave Brandsma said the robbers came through the butchery's back entrance after holding up the guard at gunpoint.
"They assaulted the manager and ordered staff to lie down. They then demanded the keys to the safe," a shaken Brandsma said.
Chicago Meats manager Mukesh Sampath said three of the men came into his office and asked him to open the safe and stand aside, while the rest of the robbers moved the staff to the back of the butchery. "It all happened so quickly. I don't think the staff had a chance to look at the robbers or count how many there were, but the police said there were eight in total," said Sampath.
The men stuffed money into butchery bags, as well as taking a money box.
The butchery is used as a pension payout point, but after the robbery Brandsma said he was no longer prepared to take the risk.
"It is the third robbery in six weeks. More than R1.5 million has been taken in total," said Brandsma.
"They were so brazen and so confident, as though they had done it before. I can't get this sick taste out of my mouth," he said.
When the robbers made their get-away in a silver Opel Corsa bakkie, Brandsma ran after them to take down the registration number.
Unbeknown to him, the robbers were already on the police's radar and the bakkie was being followed on CCTV. Five men were seated at the back and two in the front.
The cameras picked them up again on the corner of Cathedral and Monty Naicker (Pine) streets.
From there the bakkie sped on to the N3, where the first shots were fired.
The footage shows smoke billowing from the engine of a flying squad car as the men in the back opened fire.
The robbers sped towards the Pavilion shopping centre and then turned into Spine Road, where the CCTV footage ended.
However, at this stage SAPS and Metro Police were hot on their heels.
ER24 spokesman Derrick Banks said he had also been part of the drama and even followed the chase on the freeway in case any of the policemen were shot.
"We were at our base at Entabeni Hospital when we first heard gunshots. When we phoned the Metro Police, they said police were chasing suspects on the N3. At that time we could see them on the freeway giving chase," said Banks.
ER24 dispatched an ambulance that was already on the freeway and Banks followed in a response car with his colleague, Brian Hamilton, in another car behind him.
They chased after the police and followed them past the Pavilion on to Spine Road, Booth Road and then stopped at Rick Turner (Francois) Road to attend to two bystanders who were shot during the pursuit.
"We saw a police dog unit stop just past the golf driving range on Rick Turner Road, near Cato Manor. A bullet had gone through a car's windscreen and hit the male driver in his right upper chest.
"A bullet also grazed a female pedestrian on her arm.
"The driver apparently had a mild heart attack and was rushed to St Augustine's Hospital, where he is now stable in ICU. The pedestrian was taken to St Augustine's and then transferred to King Edward Hospital," said Banks.
A tow-truck driver from Durban South Towing, Wayne Heylen, saw the police chasing the bakkie and decided to follow them.
"The Corsa came flying down Rick Turner Road with the guys on the back shooting at the police. They continued across the steel bridge and when they turned left at Maydon Road, the bakkie crashed into a wall," Heylen said.
Six officers from Metro Police, the Flying Squad and Durban South Dog Unit continued pursuing the suspected robbers.
Three were shot dead on the back of the bakkie and five others in Maydon Road.
"One of the guys ducked behind a trailer and started shooting, but was killed by the police," Heylen said.
Less than half an hour after the robbery, Brandsma was contacted by the police and told the robbers had been killed and the money recovered. He was asked to come to the scene to identify the bodies.
"I couldn't believe it. These men really know what they are doing," Brandsma said.
KwaZulu-Natal MEC for Transport, Community Safety and Liaison, Bheki Cele, commended the police on their swift action.
- During the 2007/2008 financial year 490 people died in police action - 117 in KwaZulu-Natal.