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There are fears for the safety of a guard who escaped an ambush from a gang of armed robbers in South Africa.

Dramatic dashcam footage showed Leo Prinsloo coming under gunshot fire as he drove a truck carrying expensive goods through the capital Pretoria.

The video was widely shared online, with many praising his calm demeanour during the attack.

But Mr Prinsloo - who believes he has received death threats from the gang - now has armed guards outside his house.

The footage shows the moment bullets start hitting the van, shattering the windows but not breaking through the armoured glass.

Mr Prinsloo, 52, a former police sniper, remains calm as he swerves the vehicle and tells his colleague Lloyd Mtombemi to take out his gun.

"They're coming after us," Mr Prinsloo says as the chase continues.

The pair, who were in an armoured vehicle carrying mobile phones worth thousands of South African rand, were not injured during the attack on 22 April.

The video has gone viral online, but Mr Prinsloo is now fearful for his life after receiving threats from people purporting to be gang members seeking revenge.

Mr Prinsloo received a text message - seen by the ´óÏó´«Ã½ - reading: "You will pay". Another message posted on social media reads: "You'll pay with blood [for] the money we didn't get".

The ´óÏó´«Ã½ has been unable to verify the credibility of the threats.

"We're taking it as seriously as possible," Deon Coetzee, managing director of Fortis Pro-Active Defence Solutions, the security firm where Mr Prinsloo works, told the ´óÏó´«Ã½.

The company has stationed guards outside Mr Prinsloo's home in case he is attacked.

"We're keeping details on him at all times - once the gang knows who you are it becomes incredibly risky," Mr Coetzee said.

Mr Prinsloo, who has personally protected Nelson Mandela, Prince Charles and the Kardashians, says he is now always prepared for the worst.

"The first time I knew they were there was when the gunshots went off," he told the South African broadcaster eNCA.

"Instinct kicks in... I pre-visualised what I was going to do and to the best of my ability I did what my mind told me to do, and it worked out for me on that day."