Johannesburg - An electrician who was working in the roof of a Sandton house when robbers struck, stayed there and started praying while the armed men robbed the other people on the property.
The Wendywood house belongs to Neren Rau, the chief executive of the SA Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SACCI), who moved there from Centurion in June.
A guard from the Protea Security Group, who reacted to the panic button being activated, was shot in the side under his bulletproof vest. He is in a stable condition in hospital.
Fanus Mare, 43, was working on wiring in the roof while his brother Johan, 41, was busy in the passage when the robbers struck. He decided to stay in the roof until it was all over.
Rau was in the main bedroom. The robbers gained access to the house through the open gate and door.
"I heard my brother shouting: 'Don't shoot, don't shoot'. That's when I knew something was wrong. I sat down and prayed that they don't shoot my brother but when I heard the shots, I firmly believed they had shot him," said Fanus.
The robbers apparently fired three shots, two in the house and one outside, which hit the guard.
According to Johan, he was on his way to his bakkie when the two robbers walked into the house and told him to be quiet.
They searched him and took his .765 pistol. The robbers first made him lie down on the ground but then later took him to Rau in the bedroom.
'I knew I had to warn the others'
"At first I thought they were joking, but when they cocked their pistols I knew there was trouble. I knew I had to warn the others and shouted: 'Don't shoot, don't shoot'. I was scared my brother would come out of the roof and they would shoot him. I had to protect the others," he said.
Rau pressed the panic button when he heard Johan shouting. He was busy pressing the second panic button when the robbers came into the room.
The men asked Rau how many people were in the house and what he had.
"I showed him the money in my wallet and he took that. I had withdrawn about R500 earlier that day. I just tried to stay calm and knew that if we were to do anything, they would kill us. The guard saved our lives," said Rau.
The robbers fled in a green Mercedes-Benz with Mare and the security guard's pistols, as well as money.
Police spokesperson Constable Neria Malefetse said police were investigating the incident.
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