Three journalists robbed at gunpoint at Johannesburg hotel … let the World Cup begin!

So this was close enough to Friday’s kickoff that I’m calling it an official portion of the opening ceremonies … two armed men wasted no time pulling off the traditional Robbing of the Journalists at a South African hotel this morning, signaling the beginning of the World Cup.

A Portuguese photographer was held up at gunpoint early Wednesday and two other journalists also were robbed at the same World Cup hotel.

Antonio Simoes said he woke up around 4 a.m. and found two men entering his room at the Nutbush Boma Lodge outside of Magaliesburg, 75 miles northwest of Johannesburg.

“One of the guys pointed a hand gun at my head, and then they took all my gear – cameras, lenses, laptop,” said Simoes, who works for the Portuguese daily O Jogo. “Then they told me to lie on the bed and they covered me with a blanket, pressed the gun against my head and told me to sleep.

“The whole thing took one or two minutes, but it felt like hours,” Simoes told The Associated Press.

Simoes lost three cameras, $4,000 in cash and his World Cup press pass. Wisely, the crooks threw away the pass, and it was recovered later by police.
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World Cup Reporters ROBBED At Gunpoint [Huffington Post]
At least they get a nice byline [Unprofessional Foul]

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The dark side of the UCLA basketball dynasty [Los Angeles Times]