In an early-morning attempted business robbery on Wednesday, 10 December 2025, a Newcastle factory owner was hospitalised after confronting two armed intruders and preventing them from entering the premises, where his wife and infant child were present.
The incident occurred shortly after 6:30am on Edison Street in the Riverside Industrial Area of Newcastle, KwaZulu-Natal, as the businessman—who resides on site with his family—was preparing to open the factory and begin the day’s operations.
According to Newcastle SAPS spokesperson Lizzy Arumugam, the businessman, his wife, and their baby reside on the factory site they operate. That morning, the victim’s wife recounted being in their lounge area while her husband reviewed the previous day’s CCTV footage.
Once finished, he headed to the main factory door to admit employees and begin work. Yet, as he began opening it, Arumugam confirmed, two men launched a sudden assault—one wielding a bush knife.
What followed was an intense struggle, with the businessman fighting fiercely to bar the attackers from entering the premises and reaching his family.
Despite sustaining knife wounds to his torso and one hand during the fray, he refused to yield and, as Arumugam detailed, succeeded in seizing the bush knife from the armed suspect.
Now unarmed, the pair fled through the rear of the factory. In the meantime, the businessman’s wife triggered the panic alarm and sealed the gate to their living quarters, ensuring the infant’s safety.
Upon police arrival, officers examined the CCTV recordings and pursued additional leads, revealing that the intruders had accessed the property by forcing open corrugated iron sheeting at the back of the factory. This breach opened into an employee’s on-site living area, where authorities recovered a set of keys previously reported missing, strewn about the room.
The employee was detained, and from information obtained, police traced his accomplice—a third man implicated in the scheme—while also seizing blood-stained clothing consistent with the footage description.
Three suspects are now in custody, and Arumugam stated, “Further police investigations are currently underway.” These efforts, she added, aim not only to build a stronger case against those arrested but also to apprehend a fourth individual understood to have participated in the attempted business robbery.
The arrests in this case demonstrate the effectiveness of security features such as CCTV footage and panic alarms, which played a key role in both deterring the attackers and supporting the police inquiry. At the same time, the alleged involvement of an on-site employee raises concerns about insider risks in business premises.
With the investigation ongoing and one suspect still at large, this event highlights the security challenges in industrial zones, especially for operations where families live alongside workplaces.
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Do not forget to read, Newcastle Man Found Dead With Genitals Severed Near River, if you missed it.
