Gunmen raid Johannesburg warehouse for cooking oil, some suspects nabbed

Armed robbers fled with a “substantial quantity” of cooking oil after holding up staff at a warehouse in Kempton Park, east of Johannesburg, on Wednesday — but some of the suspects were caught within hours.

The Willowton Group said the robbers loaded three trucks, which were understood to be stolen, with 2-litre containers of Sunfoil sunflower cooking oil.

One of the three trucks carrying the stolen cooking oil was recovered in Vanderbijlpark on Wednesday night, and a number of suspects were arrested by police and the company's security partner in Gauteng, Vision Tactical, Willowton said.

“We are still working with the police and our security partners to recover the remaining two truckloads.”

The group asked the public and trade not to purchase the stolen stock.

“The batch codes of the stolen items are known to the police and security partners who are trying to locate the stock.”

Consumers can judge if stock is stolen by the price. The 2l Sunfoil oil bottle costs R90 to R100 at large retailers.

Earlier this year, sunflower oil prices spiked globally as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February, as the two countries account for about 62% of world sunflower oil exports. But in August, Business Times reported prices had dropped about 20% in the previous two months.

The company has offered a R100,000 reward for information leading to the successful apprehension of the perpetrators and recovery of the stolen goods.

“Anyone with information about the stolen goods is urged to report this to 082 888 7813. All information will be treated with the strictest confidence,” said the group.

None of its staff were hurt in the hold-up, the company said, adding staff were being provided with the necessary trauma counselling and support.

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