HEADLINES:
R/€ 
R/£ Rolex gang hits houghton again
Cops deny any gang involvementas another man is shot and robbedOctober 11, 2008 Edition 1
Candice Bailey
A Johannesburg man has reportedly become the latest victim of the "Rolex Gang" after he was involved in a shootout in Houghton.
Jonathan Freed (60) was in a coma in Milpark Hospital's intensive care trauma unit after undergoing two operations since being shot in the abdomen on Sunday afternoon.
Estate agents who were showing the house and a family who had come to view it were forced to dive for cover as a gunbattle erupted between Freed and his two attackers shortly after he had pulled into the driveway of the upmarket Houghton house in his late-model Porsche Turbo.
Eleven shots were fired during the exchange. The robbers made off with Freed's watch but left his wallet and his car.
Freed, who also lives in Houghton, pulled into the house around 3.30pm.
The R3.3-million house, hosted by international real estate agents Lew Geffen Sotheby's, belongs to a retired German national who is selling it so that he can return to his home country.
Karen Roos, spokesperson for the company, explained that as Freed pulled up, two men pulled up behind him and got out.
"They pulled out their guns and Mr Freed pulled out his. A shootout ensued.
"Eleven shots were fired and Mr Freed was hit in the abdomen. The men took Mr Freed's Rolex watch and fled.
"Although the other guys were shot, they fled the scene," said Roos.
Estate agent Dimitri Gutjahr was inside the house at the time.
He had heard a noise but had not come out immediately.
Freed phoned his son Justin. By the time he arrived, Gutjahr had come outside and Sotheby's chairperson Lew Geffen had also arrived on the scene.
Freed was rushed to hospital.
The Saturday Star has reported on at least six similar incidents in Sandton, Hyde Park and Houghton since March, and has confirmed reports of people being followed home from malls before being confronted and robbed.
Police, however, continue to deny the existence of any gangs.
This week Justin Freed denied that his father's Rolex watch had been taken - contradicting Roos's statement.
Reluctant to talk, he said: "Crime has been like this for the past 10 years.
"He is a victim of crime."
This was the third time that his father had been accosted in a driveway.
The last incident was in his own driveway 18 months ago when he was robbed of his watch and wallet. The first incident was also in his driveway.
Justin said he did not know if his father had fought back during the earlier incidents.
"My first concern was to get him to hospital. At that time you only want your family to be safe. But [in South Africa] they are not protected. He drove into a showday and this is what he got."
Gutjahr refused to speak to the Saturday Star this week.
Shaun Jammy, spokesperson for the Core Tactical Unit that provides service to the Houghton Community Active Patrols, does not believe the attack is the work of the Rolex Gang.
"Just because they took his Rolex does not mean it was them."
He added that, based on their investigations, the Rolex Gang had a modus operandi.
"Mr Freed was coming from a friend's place and not from anywhere the Rolex gang typically stalks.
"Secondly, the Rolex Gang typically uses relatively upmarket vehicles for attacks, while these attackers used a Volkswagen Jetta. The Rolex Gang is also very slick and professional and seem to have military training.
"The way that Mr Freed was attacked has the hallmark of less experience."
Roos said Lew Geffen would be writing a letter to the government to explain the presence of the Rolex Gang in the hope that something would be done.
Jammy said people needed to be vigilant when driving and needed to create a security bubble as they arrived home by monitoring who was following them.
"If you think you are being followed, don't stop - continue until you get to a safe place," he said.
© 1999 - 2010 Star & Independent Online (Pty) Ltd. All rights reserved.