A group of 38 Dutch tourists were attacked by armed robbers in the South African city of Johannesburg on Sunday night. They were threatened and robbed on their tour bus shortly after arriving in the country, the Telegraaf reports.

The robbery happened on the way to their first hotel. The bus was forced off the road by men dressed as police officers. The bus driver was forced to drive to an isolated place, where the men piled into the bus and threatened and robbed the Dutch passengers, according to the newspaper.

"It was hell", one of the passengers said to the Telegraaf. "Most of the passengers are 70 plus. People panicked and even got firearms aimed at them. In two cases, the trigger was pulled but the gun didn't fire." According to the passenger, a number of the elderly people were punched. "The suitcases were also taken out of the cargo area. They were busy for 20 minutes. People cried and are in shock. They took the keys from the bus and disappeared."

The bus driver and tour guide were tied up during the robbery. After the robbers left, passengers freed them. The driver had a spare key in the cargo area, which he retrieved and drove the tourists to their hotel. There the police and emergency services were called. "We are safe now. But we are in shock and want to go back. We just landed for a 22-day trip, but the fun has gone", the passenger said to the newspaper.