According to Sergeant Tshepiso Mashela, spokesperson for the Krugersdorp Police, there has been an increase in the number of Toyota Hilux bakkies being stolen.
Just yesterday, the News published a police report stating that there is a rise in car theft in Krugersdorp, and the police issued a warning to owners to be extra vigilant.
After this warning was issued, a video of a Toyota Hilux bakkie being stolen outside a high school in Noordheuwel went viral on Facebook.
Watch video posted on Krugersdorp Community Forum Facebook group here:
https://www.facebook.com/marco.schubert.71/videos/10158385001154848/
Community members and parents of Hoërskool Noordheuwel learners, specifically the matrics, are angry and fed up about what they say is the school passing the buck.
In the video, a man can be seen standing next to a Toyota Hilux. He is seen fiddling with the passenger side door’s lock, and keeps looking around to see if someone is coming. After a while, he opens the door and gets into the bakkie.
The video stops there, but witnesses saw the man driving off with the vehicle.
A woman commented on the Facebook post, saying that she had seen the man and alerted the school, but when she came outside it was already too late. Parents are now demanding that something be done.
According to sources, five cars have been stolen this year – two in the last two months.
Another claim is that there is a B-field at the school that is not being used. Facebook comments suggest that the grass there is already dead and parents are suggesting the space be used as extra parking.
The News was told that the school built extra classrooms in 2013 and used the parking space at the back of the school for the new classrooms. This left the matric learners with no parking, forcing them to park outside.
In a letter sent to the News, the parents said they had already asked the school, back in 2013, if the B-field could be used as parking.
One learner claimed that the B-field is used for parking when there are sports events at the school, but the school does not allow them to use it on a day to day basis.
According to the source, the school is afraid that the children will damage the field if they park there every day.
In a statement the News received from the principal, Jac Fourie, he said that the school, unfortunately, does not have an unused area that they can use for the matric learners to park. He said that they have informed learners that parking at the school is at their own risk and they discourage learners from coming to school with their own vehicles because the school cannot guarantee the safety of their vehicles and can also not handle the volumes.
He added that the vehicle was supposedly stolen within less than a minute and not more than 50 metres from a security guard that was on duty.
“In cooperation with the Community Policing Forum, we have installed a camera that covers the parking area. It will be manned 24 hours a day. We have also appointed extra guards and the school’s security company will be increasing their visibility around the school,” he added.
When the News visited the school this morning, 24 October, there were two security guards watching over the cars.
There were also two security guards inside the school grounds at the gate.
Parents are saying they will sign a release form if the cars are parked behind locked gates. They are also willing to pay for the children to park inside.
It is alleged that other schools charge R400 per semester for their learners to park inside the school grounds.
The parents claim that this will keep their children’s cars safer and save the school the expense of appointing more guards. They have a solution for the damage to the field as well. All children will be required to sign in and if they misuse this privilege, they will have to park outside again.
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