Cape Town - A team of volunteers has been deployed to curb the upsurge in smash and grab incidents during the festive season at the Jakes Gerwel Drive intersections between Langa and Bonteheuwel.
Ward councillor Angus McKenzie said while this was not a long term solution, it would bring much relief and visibility.
“Once again, we are seeing community-led initiatives take the place of the job that should ordinarily be done by police who appear to be enjoying beach patrols more than community safety,” he said.
The City said it has recorded 291 smash and grabs and 132 attempted smash and grabs in the vicinity in the past six months.
Mayoral committee member for safety and security, JP Smith, said the City had cameras along the entire stretch of the road, but the challenge was to catch suspects who used a nearby informal settlement to make their getaways.
“Just recently, metro police officers followed up on information and made arrests of smash and grab suspects in separate incidents. One of them was found hiding under a bed in the Joe Slovo informal settlement.”
He said most incidents happened during the day on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. Few incidents were reported between 9pm and 6am.
Smith said the City tried its utmost to attend to all smash and grab hotspots, but did not have the resources for a static, around the clock presence.
“What further complicates the situation is that the criminals move around, based on deployment. Earlier this year, we experienced a massive downturn in smash and grab incidents along Jakes Gerwel Drive, but a significant spike in the Kalksteenfontein area, and so much of our resources were redeployed, based on the data. This was then followed by another resurgence along Jakes Gerwel Drive."
Bishop Lavis CPF chairperson Graham Lindhorst encouraged residents and motorists to report smash and grabs to the police, despite police having turned away various complainants.
“Every time, people are told not to report the case and they must get the perpetrator before laying a charge because there is no prospect of an arrest. However, we encourage people to report these cases because they assist with the statistics and if not reported, the statistics get skewed and we are not able to get the resources we are supposed to have to fight this.”
Cape Argus