Dandenong North milk bar owner bashed with gun during armed robbery

A BRAVE Dandenong North shop owner was bashed repeatedly in the head with the butt of a gun while he tried to protect his wife from two masked thugs raiding their store. It’s the latest in a spree of violent attacks clearly targeting Melbourne milk bars, a retail chief says.

A BRAVE milk bar owner was bashed repeatedly in the head with the butt of a gun while trying to save his wife from two masked thugs.

Dandenong North man Jimmy Huang, 47, still nursing a black eye and swollen head, told the Leader he was hit over and over again during the terrifying attack, and he bled so much he couldn’t see.

He had been watching television at the back of their Heatherton Rd store about 9.30pm on Friday when he heard his wife scream and rushed to help.

Jimmy Huang, 47, was taken to Dandenong Hospital with head wounds after the attack.

“I heard my wife yelling so I tried to get out to have a look but the people grabbed hold of me and used a gun to hit me,” he said.

“It was very bloody, I couldn’t do anything. My wife was just asking them to stop.”

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His wife, Yin Ding, 42, tried to escape as the duo burst through the door brandishing handguns, but they jumped the counter and she couldn’t get away.

She said they grabbed hold of her three times as she tried to break free and call for help.

On the third try, while watching the thugs beat her husband, she managed to slip her jacket off and run to the pizza shop next door to call 000.

“If I didn’t manage to get out I don’t know what would have happened to us because nobody would have come,” she said.

“I think my husband would have been more seriously hurt.”

Cuts on Mr Huang immediately following the attack from three masked thugs.

Ms Ding said she was scared because so many milk bars had been robbed recently.

“We hope it doesn’t happen again, but at the moment we don’t feel it’s safe,” she said.

She said a coin laundry and bottle shop next door had also been targeted.

The pair, described as one man of African appearance and one of caucasian, aged in their late teens to early 20s, fled with about $300 cash and 20 packets of cigarettes.

Dandenong detective Senior Constable Tony Lavars said they were last seen running across the oval next to Dandenong Oasis leisure centre.

The couple had security cameras installed but have since got a new one and said they will install a security fence above the counter.

“Normally if (criminals) came in the first thing we would do is run,” Ms Ding said.

“Our lives being the most important thing, money is not important.

“But last Friday we couldn’t run, it was so quick, they held us and hit us.”

Remarkably, the pair still opened the shop the following day.

The milk bar on Heatherton Rd where the owner was bashed with the butt of a gun last Friday.

Mr Huang was taken by ambulance to Dandenong Hospital where doctors used staples to mend two cuts on his head.

They said it was the first time they had been attacked in 11 years of owning the store.

The couple said they work long hours, from 6.30am to 9.30pm each day, and didn’t deserve to have this happen.

Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.

MILK BARS VULNERABLE, OWNERS URGED TO TAKE PRECAUTIONS

HUMBLE Victorian milk bars and corner stores are increasingly being hit by crooks in violent armed robberies, says an Australian retail chief.

And heroic owners fighting back to protect their staff and stock are being urged not to risk their lives.

Since the start of the year milk bar workers have been attacked at least seven times across Melbourne and one store was ram raided, with crims mainly targeting cash and cigarettes.

Tragically last week, 24-year-old tradie Sadiq Husseini was also allegedly stabbed to death outside a Doveton milk bar.

Workers have been beaten with hammers, baseball bats, metal poles and threatened with knives, guns and machetes by brazen crooks looking for a quick smash and grab.

Milk bar attendant Zheng Zhang fought off a would-be robber wielding a baseball bat. Picture: Josie Hayden

Australian Retailers Association executive director Russell Zimmerman said there had been an increase in retail armed robberies this year and he believed Victorians were under siege more than the other states.

“We’ve seen a large amount of armed robberies in jewellery stores, however, as tobacco is an expensive commodity and easy to sell on the black market, retail corner stores are being targeted, particularly if they don’t have strong security,” he said.

Victoria Police spokeswoman Natalie Butler said they were aware “small businesses such as milk bars or convenience stores can be particularly susceptible to offences such as armed robberies”.

She said police worked with relevant associations and store owners on target-hardening measures, such as additional security, alarms, reinforced glass, concealed panic buttons and secure service areas.

Other store owners have bravely fought back against their attackers, prompting warnings from police and retail bosses.

Preston milk bar owner Xing Ming Lin was injured when his shop was robbed.

In June, Ben Lin, the son of a Preston milk bar owner, foiled armed robbers with a baseball bat after they attacked his dad.

And in May milk bar attendant Zheng Zhang, 21, fought off a man armed with a baseball bat with his bare hands at his family business in Boronia.

Mr Zimmerman said lives are far more valuable than being a hero.

“The ARA’s first and foremost concern is the safety for retail owners and workers, therefore we would never advise putting yourself at risk,” he said.

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