Be vigilant, Be aware, Be alert.
A home invasion that traumatised a family, a woman left penniless after her cheque account is plundered and a young woman out of pocket after falling victim to a clever con. This week's top stories emphasise yet again how easily we can become victims of crime.
THE Glenwood family’s traumatic ordeal at the hands of gun-wielding thugs who stormed into their home last week is another harsh reminder of the times we live in. We had barely returned from interviewing the fear-stricken family when we were alerted to yet another home invasion in the same area. Sadly, this type of crime is becoming an all too familiar occurrence. The young woman who bravely agreed to speak to us makes a good point. Your home is supposed to be the one place where you feel safe, loved and comforted, surrounded by your hard-earned possessions.
I was equally alarmed by two other stories in this week’s paper. The young girl who was scammed out of a considerable sum of money by an unscrupulous couple posing as owners of a flat in Morningside, and the woman who had her cheque account plundered by faceless online hackers. These types of crime are not new, we have, for months reported on stories warning people to be vigilant when responding to adverts on sites such as Gumtree. What made this story all the more believable was the clever ploy on the part of the scammers who knew the name of the tenant who was moving out the flat and the fact that the conwoman used a name that sounded similar to that of the letting agent. I may have been just as easily duped.
When it comes to checking bank statements I have to admit, I’m a dismal failure but I do subscribe to my bank’s sms alerts which tell me when there is any activity on my banking account. I know I’m going to be a lot more careful and will be checking the purchases recorded on my bank statement with a much more vigilant eye. Online banking is probably my favourite 21st century invention, but it has its pitfalls and it pays to be aware of them.
The 3Bs refrain we sing off by heart, week in and week out – Be vigilant, Be aware, Be alert – is something we need to take to heart. We’ve all read it and heard it so many times out of the mouths of a myriad of different people, that its repetition has deadened us to the importance of the message it conveys. We do need to be more vigilant, we cannot afford to let our guard down, whether it’s relaxing over coffee somewhere, sitting at home watching TV or daydreaming in traffic. We have to be alert to the fact that it only takes a split second for us to become victims.
Some months ago I interviewed Private Investigator Brad Nathanson. What struck me most about the interview which was conducted in a popular and busy coffee shop what how aware he was of his surroundings. His eyes constantly roamed the room and the entrance, he was very aware of the people moving around him, the cars moving in and out the car park and the movement of security guards in the centre. It was fascinating to watch and it was a good lesson on just how alert and aware we have to become in every minute of our day.
Crime is not going to magically disappear. It’s a fact of life and we have to live with it. If we’re going to survive it then we’re going to have to be more vigilant, more alert and more aware.
