Faith in humanity (almost) restored after being pickpocketed
A woman's purse was stolen from her zipped handbag while she was shopping.
A pensioner’s trust in humanity has been restored somewhat after she had an ordeal with a pickpocket earlier this year.
Marie Holtzhausen (68) a resident of the Golden Age Village in Wentworth Park felt the need to thank a community member for showing that there are still people who are willing to help others in need.
She says Tony Da Silva, a manager at President Hyper Krugersdorp assisted her after she had realised that she was pickpocketed at the shop.
“He is such a professional. He recently gave me a large hamper with some of the best goods the store has to offer, such as coffee, tea, chocolates, biscuits, rusks and so much more. That made me such a happy shopper and I need to thank him for restoring the faith in humanity I thought I have lost.”
She spoke about the day her wallet was stolen.
“I went to President Hyper and was in one of the isles when a woman continuously bumped against me either with her body or with her trolley. At one stage I got agitated with her when she literally climbed over my trolley to fetch products from the shelf. That was when I told her to let me pass her to prevent that from happening again. Through all of this I had my handbag over my shoulder and it was zipped.
“When I had all the stuff that I needed I went to the cashier to pay. That was when I realised that my wallet was stolen. I felt so embarrassed about the situation and started crying and apologised to the cashier that I might have been pickpocketed and that I was now unable to pay for my goods.”
The cashier then took her to Da Silva where she explained the situation. They went to look for the suspects, but it seemed that they have already left.
“He was a real gentleman and told me to take the stuff that I bought – nearly R400 worth of goods – and if I do get my wallet back I could settle the account.”
When she got home she cancelled all her cards and about ten minutes later the crime bureau phoned her, notifying her that someone tried to withdraw R2 000. After that had failed due to insufficient funds they tried to withdraw R1 000, which also failed.
Holtzhausen says she and her son went back to President Hyper the next day where he thanked them for the way they treated her and he paid the account.
“The whole pickpocket situation was very costly and time-consuming as I had to reapply for a driver’s licence and identity document, and had to cancel my Sassa card and get a new one.”
She now wants to warn elderly people who are seen as easy targets and are more vulnerable to these types of crimes to be on the lookout for suspicious people when they are doing their shopping. She advises people to take note of whoever bumps against them for no reason and always to keep their valuables such as purses safe.
