*Seconds before he was supposed to go on air, South African news reporter Vuyo Mvoko and his crew got mugged by two men – and cameras captured the whole thing.
Mvoko, a contributing editor at South African Broadcasting Company’s SABC News, was about to report on the condition of Zambian president Edgar Lungu. He was awaiting his live shot outside of Johannesburg’s Millpark Hospital when two men, one of them reportedly armed, rolled up and demanded his cell phone. Mvoko had been holding it after talking to his producer.
Mvoko told SABC News later that he didn’t realize what was happening at first.
“It was literally seconds before going on air,” he said. “Who could possibly disturb me while they know that we’re literally seconds before going on air?”
The muggers became more aggressive as Mvoko refused to give up his phone and pushed the reporter off camera. Mvoko stated that one of the muggers had a gun.
The thieves ended up with two cell phones and a laptop from Mvoko and his crew, who were all unharmed.
Watch it all go down, below:
The SABC crew reported the crime and police showed up soon after.
“Every South African lives with the reality of crime, but to see thugs brazenly ignoring television cameras and robbing media workers in the course of their work, yet again brings home the level of criminality in our society,” the South African National Editors’ Forum said in a statement. “The muggers are clearly identifiable on camera and we hope that arrests and prosecution will occur soon.”
Yet, as Mvoko retold the story in the SABC studio he seemed in high spirits.
“All in a day’s work,” he joked.
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