Three World Cup Photographers Robbed in South Africa

Three foreign World Cup photo journalists were robbed of money, passports, cameras and computers at gunpoint early on Wednesday morning, according to South African police. Police Col. Charmaine Muller told the media that armed suspects entered three hotel rooms where the journalists were staying near the town of Magaliesburg.

A Portuguese photographer was held up at gunpoint and two other journalists also were robbed at the same World Cup hotel. The other two journalists sharing his three-bedroomed lodge then discovered they had been robbed as they slept.

A suspect pointed a gun at him and told him to keep quiet, he said.

No one has been caught yet by the police and the investigation is taking place to catch the unknown robbers.

World cup soccer tournament starts on Friday in South Africa for which hundreds of thousands of sports fans and journalists are descending to South Africa to be a part of the biggest sporting event in the world this year.

Portuguese photographer Antonio Simoes was in South Africa to shoot the World Cup when he was robbed at gunpoint in his hotel room yesterday morning.

Two men entered his room at the Nutbush Boma Lodge at about 4am, pointed a gun at his head, and stole roughly $35,000 worth of camera equipment. Two other journalists staying in the hotel were also robbed that same morning.

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