Nigerians and hookers kicked out of ‘hijacked’ house
Friday, May 2, saw the closure of yet another house suspected being a drug den.
The tenants of house 26 Turvey Street, in Western Extension, were evicted from the premises they have occupied illegally all along.
Beside being known by local residents as a drug and prostitution house, the house was recently in the news after the disappearance of a Nigerian national, apparently in the hands of the police.
The house has long been on the list of “problematic properties”, said to be housing “drug dealers and hookers”, compiled by the Western Extension CPF.
On Friday, neighbouring residents breathed a sigh of relieve as the tenants were finally booted out.
Resident Debbie Dos Reis, who lives nearby, was over the moon at the latest developments.
It’s an absolute pleasure to have them out finally,” she said.
“She thanks the owner of the house, the Benoni CPF, SAPS, the Impala CPF and the CMS for all their help.
Dos Reis said the person who leased that property disappeared a long time ago and, since then, a whole lot of Nigerians have been living there unlawfully.
She described the house condition as being terrible and warned residents to be careful when they rent out their houses, as they could be wrecked.
Councillor Mary Goby said she is very thankful to the SAPS and the CPF for all the work they put into removing the problem tenants.
“The CPF say they want to give Benoni back to the residents and I totally agree with them, as this town has been under siege for years by drug dealers and prostitutes,” said Goby.
Last year, letters authorised by both the Asset Forfeiture Unit and the police to “seven problematic properties” in Western Extension, identified as either being drug and/or prostitution hubs, were delivered to owners from April 12.
The house was among these.
According to State Advocate John Wilson, for the asset forfeiture unit, in terms of Section 51 of the Prevention of Organised Crime Act 121 of 1998, the National Director of Public Prosecutions (NDPP) may apply to a judge in chambers, or a magistrate, for an order notifying a person having an interest control over property, where there are reasonable grounds to believe that such property is an instrument of an offence.
The order is then served on the owner and, in the event the owner persists with renting out the property to drug traffickers, the Asset Forfeiture Unit will have no difficulty in seizing and forfeiting the property to the state.
