REACTION officers from Blue Security made several arrests in the Highway area during the past few days following crimes of theft and mugging to attempted assault.
The company’s managing director, Henk van Bemmelen, said a vigilant reaction officer went to the rescue of a school boy who was mugged at 2.30pm last Friday while he was walking home from school in Progress Road in New Germany.
“Two men, armed with knives, robbed the boy and fled. One of our reaction officers who was patrolling in the area gave chase. He arrested one of the men, who fitted the description that the boy gave of one of his attackers.
“A knife was recovered and the arrested man was handed over to the Pinetown SAPS,” said Van Bemmelen. The second robber was not caught.
In a separate incident on Saturday another thief was arrested after he allegedly entered a property in Henwood Road and stole an aluminium pipe.
“Our reaction officer noticed the man walking down Crompton Street, in broad daylight at lunch time, with the stolen pipe and apprehended him. The business owner declined to open a charge against the alleged thief and he was released on warning,” he said.
A reaction officer was called out to a house in Woodlands Avenue in Westville after a man threatened to stab a resident’s gardener before he fled the scene. “Our reaction officer gave chase and arrested the man and took him back to the property. However, the gardener declined to press charges and the man was released,” he said.
Van Bemmelen said Blue Security reaction officers were trained to act as visible policing officers in the community and would respond to any crimes that took place during their patrols. “We also urge parents to speak to their children about crime and security, especially if they need to take public transport or have to walk home from school. If approached by a mugger while out walking, always hand over any valuables, rather than face the risk of being seriously injured during an attack,” he urged.
