MARCUS GARTSIDE of Glen Marais writes:
In the early hours of July 25, 2012, three men entered my home, assaulted my wife and I and terrorised us and my two young sons for roughly an hour while they ransacked our house, finally leaving with various valuables and one of our vehicles.
Of these three men, one (the obvious leader) was extremely aggressive and I truly feared for our lives.
After they had left and my son had untied me, I rang the emergency services and within ten minutes the first police van arrived at our house, closely followed by another two.
Shortly thereafter, the officer on duty from Kempton Park SAPS was on the scene, as well as a police photographer and fingerprint expert. I was truly impressed by the response time of these officers and must commend them, not only on their efficiency but also the level of concern and sympathy they expressed towards my family who were obviously still extremely traumatised.
At around 1am the following morning I received a call from a Sgt Lephading who, following a tip-off, had found what he suspected were some of our stolen items at a hostel in Tembisa. The person in possession of these was going to lead Sgt Lephading and his team to the man he had bought them from.
An hour later he called again to confirm that he had a suspect in custody and that more of our goods had been recovered.
Later that morning I was contacted by W/O Dinyane, who requested me to come and identify some of the goods. Again, I must say that I was impressed by all the members we dealt with at the Tembisa Police Station.
D/Sgt Dan Moloantoa was the investigating officer for our case and has kept me constantly updated as to the progress, arranging the identity parade, court dates, etc. I also understand he was personally to thank for re-arresting the suspect after he was released due to a clerical error at his first court appearance.
This person was also wanted in connection with various other crimes, including illegal possession of a firearm and ammunition, escaping custody in Limpopo and armed robbery.
Nearly two years later, and after several court dates and postponements, thankfully the case has been finalised and the suspect sentenced to 17 years imprisonment for some of the cases against him, including ours. He is still facing other charges as well.
I wish to extend my heartfelt appreciation towards everyone involved in this matter, from those who responded initially, the arresting members with Sgt Lephading, and the investigating officers. I have newfound respect for the police after this experience, although their efforts are seldom recognised or appreciated.
Special mention must be made of certain members (my spelling of their names may be incorrect): Sgt Lephading (and his team) for his actions which led to the suspect’s arrest within 24 hours of the crime; D/Sgt Dan Moloantoa for his ongoing efforts and follow up.
Without his dedication, I do not think the matter would have resulted in a conviction.
Constables Ledwaba, Mathebula, Mgiba and Sgt Nyatlo, who also testified in the case.
These officers (and everyone else involved whose names I did not get) are a credit to the police service and I thank them once again for their ongoing efforts in ensuring the safety of our community.
