Is it an encouraging recovery?

Last week the NEWS reported on some of the national crime statistics for the Muldersdrift area released recently by the Minister of Police, Nathi Mthethwa.

Jorncy Page, the Chairman of the Community Policing Forum (CPF) in the area, confirmed that the area had been relatively calm with only a few isolated incidents, despite the report stating that serious and violent crime in Muldersdrift have increased. Nineteen murders have taken place compared to last year’s 10.

“We have seen an encouraging drop of 45 per cent in house robberies and of 24 per cent in house break-ins. While there are still pockets of serious crime, the motive has changed from last year and now is focused largely on the shebeens and alcohol-related disputes. In the residential areas the incidents have been confined largely to petty crime such as fence cutting and so forth,” he says.

“We have tightened up our sector protocols and communication and, together with the South African Police Service, worked hard to create a much stronger informer network and relationship with the informal settlements, so they have direct contact with their sector policing officers.”

Increased police activity and presence in the area and the successful apprehension, arrest and sentencing of the trio responsible for a number of offences, including the murder of 13-year-old Alyssa Botha that sent shock waves through the community, have been key factors influencing the positive turnaround.

This is particularly positive for a community that has such a strong tourism and leisure focus, and is attracting such large commercial development at the moment.

The three accused have not pleaded to the charges against them yet.

One of the accused did enter a plead of guilty, but only to the fact that he was present during the robbery and murder of 50-year-old André Jordaan.

The area has been proactive in introducing a number of other positive community initiatives, which have made Muldersdrift a much safer community.

A proactive Muldersdrift Community Action Group (MCAG) was formed in April to address some serious security concerns, with representation from the SAPS, CPF, business and community.

“While we acknowledge that it is still too early to assess results, some incredibly positive initiatives have been put in place over the last seven months and we believe the community is starting to feel the benefits from these,” says MCAG spokesperson Craig Rowe.

Rowe says that information sign boards, staff profiling, venue mapping, a crisis strategy and rejuvenation marketing plan driven by the action group are currently in place. Exciting monthly development activities have been initiated and are supported by various groups in the community.

Anthony Paton, Managing Director of SMS Security, one of the private security companies operating in the area confirms that they have seen a general decline in incidents over the last six months and have had no serious crime incidents within their direct footprint.

He says that even on smaller incidents such as the recent bike jacking, the four suspects who assaulted and robbed a group of cyclists in the Nooitgedacht area have been apprehended and charged, following a successful joint operation between Muldersdrift SAPS, the community and SMS Security on 7 September 2013.

“We are cognisant of the fact that country wide crime escalates the closer we get to Christmas. We believe it is important for everyone to stay alert and for the community to work closely together over the next three months.

Typically ATM fraud, cash-in-transit robberies and house break-ins escalate around the country the closer we get to the festive season,” says Paton.

Page concludes by saying that the cooperation between the community, the SAPS and the CPF definitely is paying dividends and this past month the CPF sectors also received great support from local councillors.

The donations received have been used for plug-in floodlights on the police vans and hand-held torches to aid with investigations.