Cape Town - A suspect got the fright of his life on Tuesday when he tried to burgle a house in Strandfontein, only to find the homeowner filming him as he tried to break in.
Video footage of the incident in Borzia Street went viral on social media and crimefighters rushed to lock down the Cape Flats community in the hopes of catching the suspects.
In the video, a white Toyota Quantum van with tinted windows is seen driving slowly down the road and stopping at a house.
The homeowner holds the camera behind the net curtain and when a man is seen getting out of the taxi, the owner runs through the house to a bedroom to get a better view.
The house does not have a gate or fence and the suspect approaches the front door within seconds, taking a crowbar out of his jacket and attempts to break open the security gate. The owner then shouts at him: “Hello! Ja, I got you!”
The crook gets a big fright and runs back into the taxi, which speeds off.
Community Police Forum (CPF) chairperson, Sandy Schuter, says they were alerted to the video shortly after 10.30am and sent alerts to block watches in the area.
“We went to various entry points to see if we could find the taxi, but could not,” she says.
“The husband who filmed it sent it to his wife and they are on the blockwatch.
“He was at home and saw this taxi and reached for his phone.
“The skelm (crook) had no idea someone was inside the house.
“We have not had crowbar break-ins in a couple of months and at this stage we are not sure how many people were inside the taxi because the windows were tinted.”
Police spokesperson, Siyabulela Malo, confirms the incident and says police are now investigating an attempted house robbery case.
“Circumstances surrounding this incident are being investigated with no arrests made so far.”
Schuter warns suspects trying to break into houses in Strandfontein that they are going to “loop them vas” as alert residents are on constant watch.
“These skelms must know they are going to loop them vas here in Strandfontein!
“The people are gatvol of crime, en hulle moet hulle siel bewaar as hulle enige iemand hier seermaak.” (The people are sick and tired of crime, and they must be careful if they hurt anyone here.)
“They are going to get a community pak slae. We are verby gatvol and the homeowner filming it helped us expose these people.”