Cape Town - Table Mountain National Park has seen a marked increase in armed robberies.
Only two armed robberies were reported last year with eight arrests. This year that number has increased to 29 armed robberies, with 14 suspects apprehended.
Area manager for the Northern Section of Table Mountain National Park Wana Bacela said incidents had become more violent.
“There have already been two fatalities recorded for this year as a result of an armed robbery.”
Andre van Schalkwyk, chairman of Table Mountain Security Action Group, said their records showed 104 people had been attacked in 54 incidents, including armed robberies, muggings and assaults this year, compared to last year, which saw 91 people fall victim in 40 incidents and 41 people in 29 attacks in 2016.
“The situation has not been dealt with holistically and everything has been left to the rangers to deal with and there are not enough rangers.”
Van Schalkwyk said an operational plan in conjunction with the TMNP, the SAPS and the city’s Law Enforcement would be launched for the summer season.
Rashaad Jakoet, chairman of the Hikers Paradise Adventure Club, fell victim to an armed robbery with a hiking group while they were hiking from Hout Bay to Sandy Bay in March.
“All three of the men were armed with guns. I remember saying to the group of 11, ‘Put your stuff down and step away’, and some did. Some tried to run away and into the ocean, I looked back and said, ‘What are you doing? Just put your things down.’ They did and thankfully they just took the stuff and went away,” said Jakoet.
In January, nine members from the club were robbed by two men with knives, posing as hikers.
“I wasn’t there at the time but responded. The suspects had slashed, stabbed and bashed the hikers. One person had a punctured lung, one had his head bashed in with a rock and was airlifted to hospital. Another had intensive surgery on his leg because he was stabbed, he also had surgery on his wrists and is still getting treatment for that now. One person had his teeth knocked in with a rock.”
The latest incident, earlier this month, involved a group of hikers who were attacked at Newlands Ravine.
Four victims were held up by five knife-wielding attackers who tied, stripped and robbed them. Three out of the of the four victims were stabbed during the attack.
SAPS Lieutenant-Colonel Andrè Traut said: “Crimes reported in these areas are mostly robbery and theft out of motor vehicles and crime patterns have not been determined to any specific time of the day. It is worth mentioning that Table Mountain National Park is policed by several police stations stretching from Cape Town to Simon’s Town and each area is unique when it comes to policing and crime trends.”
Boris Valdemar, who has been running the Hikers for All Club, said in 2005 there had been a similar escalation of crime that was brought under control by several clubs rallying together to conduct patrols.
“The criminals are watching the mountains now, it’s almost as if they know which areas to target and when. Some members have resorted to walking up the mountain armed; we didn’t want to, but we have to for our safety.”
Hikers’ cars have also fallen prey to criminals. Earlier this week four cars were broken into on Constantia Nek.
Car break-in hotspots identified by Table Mountain Security Action Group include the parking at the start of Devil’s Peak trail (end of Tafelberg Road) and Silvermine East.
Protection plan
Table Mountain National Park plans to mitigate crime by:
◆Establishing a rapid response team to respond to crime incidents.
◆Increasing the number of rangers in areas where there have been violent incidents.
◆Focusing crime-fighting initiatives in the hotspots.
◆Make use of technology to monitor crime-prone areas.
◆Other interventions the park is discussing with the city include the possibility of the park making use of the city’s monitoring systems.