West Auckland dairy owner Ayub Sacha has been in this country for four decades now, and he still cannot come to terms with the fact that he was robbed at gunpoint last weekend.
Sacha, turning 60 later this year, was watching the All Blacks game on Saturday, September 10, in the dairy when what appeared to be a well-built man pointed a rifle at his head and demanded cash and cigarettes.
That action left Sacha shocked and unresponsive for a few seconds until the masked man yelled and pressed the gun into his head demanding cash from the drawer.
Sacha handed over a few notes but it wasn’t enough for the robber who demanded more from the Lotto till. He also asked for cigarettes to be put into his bag and then fled the scene.
Sacha broke down as he shared his nightmare with Indian Weekender. “I felt it was my last day, I was and still am terrified beyond what I can explain,” said Sacha.
“I handed the robber $4,000 in cash and around $2,000 worth cigarettes,” he added.
On Anzac Day earlier this year, an armed teenager tried to mug him, which resulted in a fist fight in retaliation from Sacha. He was unhurt as he chased the miscreant out of the store.
“I used to have a young bodyguard earlier, and a store guard who would come late in the afternoon and patrol all evening, but I think I need to employ one again,” he added.
Kaushik Kumar from South Auckland Superette & Dairy in Papakura has employed two young neighbours who check into his store occasionally to make sure everything is in place.
“The police come late and these two young neighbours are my only immediate aid.
“Earlier this year my brother went into a fist fight with the robber in order to defend himself and the store, and as ridiculous it may sound, the police threatened to charge him for blocking the way out of the robbers,” Kumar told Indian Weekender last week.
Most of these dairy stores are located at road corners and the suburbs are often deserted especially after sunset. Thus, these locals become a soft target for criminals for easy money and a few cigarettes and/or alcohol.
With the rise in burglaries and armed robberies, the only concern for these dairy owners is that they are not satisfied with the sentencing given by the court.
“These criminals cannot be let away by just doing community hours and a few weeks in prison, harsher punishment will at least mitigate such crimes and set an example,” said Sacha.
