Businessman Saifi Mukhtar of Thohoyandou says he has only God to thank for saving his life and those of his colleagues.

Mukhtar's business was robbed last Friday by three men masquarading as policemen who demanded money before taking airtime vouchers, cigarettes and cell phones. They then fled the scene in a minibus painted in the same colours as that of the police. Mukhtar said all the time he was lying down, he had been praying that God would save them.

The incident has sparked a row between the Indian community in Thohoyandou and the police in Thohoyandou.

Mukhtar said they had already closed the shop for the day when they heard a knock at the door. “They shouted that they were police officers from Thohoyandou police station and they had information that the business was to be robbed by criminals and we should open as they wanted to help us,” said Mokhtar. He said he believed them as they were wearing police uniforms and that a police vehicle was parked outside with other police officers inside.

He said that  when they opened the door, three of the individuals entered and one was holding a case docket, which made them look like real police. They told him to close the door as they wanted to speak to him. "After closing the door, one of the 'policemen' held us up with his firearm and ordered us to lie down. He started kicking us, robbing us of all the money we had,” he said.

He said one of the “policemen” jumped over the counter and took all the money. They were then all locked in the the office before the robbers sped off in the minibus. A family member, who later arrived at the business, unlocked the office.

“We went to the police station, where we opened a case,” said Mukhtar. He said as proof that God had really rescued them, a magazine full of bullets fell down while they were lying down and praying. “God can rescue you from any situation; we have seen the power of the prayer during the robbery,” he said.

He said he had lost more than R40 000 in cash, while the cellphones, cigarettes and airtime vouchers could amount to approximatelty R30 000.

Indian community leader Ayob Madina said they were worried by the escalation of crime against businesses owned by Indians. According to him, the Indian community is not  treated well in Thohoyandou. “On the same Friday, there were three cases reported of robberies where the victims were Indian businessmen,” he added. He said they were concerned about the way cases involving Indians were being handled.

“These cases are not investigated as police are working with criminals. They supply them with information,” he said. He showed Limpopo Mirror an SMS message demanding R700 000 from him, which he said was sent to him after a child was kidnapped in Block F last year. He said he had traced the message and given the police all the relevant information, but nothing was done.

Limpopo police spokesperson Lt Mohale Ramatseba said the matter was receiving attention "and we will even find out if the men are indeed policemen or plain robbers,” said Ramatseba.