Mpumalanga SAPS urge stokvel groups and farmers to be vigilant during festive season
The police urge the community to refrain from withdrawing large sums of money as this could pose serious risks, and instead to use electronic transfers as a means of payment.
With the festive season around the corner, the police are urging the public to guard against criminals eager to do whatever they can to get hold of their savings.
Cattle owners around the Hazyview and Bushbuckridge areas are urged to be on the alert during the upcoming festive season and keep a close watch on their livestock.
People need to make sure that the live cattle or beef they buy have not been stolen and should not buy it on the street, but only from the owner’s yard.
A provincial police spokesperson, Brigadier Donald Mdhluli, warned the public not to fall victim to buying stolen meat or cows. He also said if people are found to be in possession of stolen meat, they will be charged and face a jail term or fine. “People need to make sure that the live cattle or beef they buy have not been stolen and should not buy it on the street, but only from the owner’s yard. All livestock should have some sort of identification, and the owner should be able to produce or a permit to own it,” he said.
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Mdhluli also called on the public to report any suspicious actions or stock theft to the nearest police station.
This warning comes prior to festivities during which members of social clubs and other similar groupings, such as stokvels, gear up to share large sums of money they have saved throughout the year. It is often during this period when perpetrators pounce on their victims.
“The police continue to advise the public against carrying large sums of cash for the purposes of sharing, but to rather consider other means such as electronic transfers into individual accounts, despite the excitement of carrying large sums of cash on their persons. This trend often puts them in a vulnerable position of being targeted by criminals. Having cash transferred electronically into one’s bank account may assist in preventing incidents of robberies as reported during the past years in relation to stokvels,” he said.
The intention of alerting the public about this subject matter is not to discourage people from forming groups to save, but to encourage them to do so safely and to safeguard their hard-earned cash.
Mdhluli added that withdrawing large sums of cash to buy groceries is also not safe. As far as possible, electronic card transfers at retailers are preferable to cash. “It is possible that some of these robberies are orchestrated by greedy people who joined the stokvels with the intention to connive with criminals to rob fellow members. The intention of alerting the public about this subject matter is not to discourage people from forming groups to save, but to encourage them to do so safely and to safeguard their hard-earned cash.”
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The Mpumalanga SAPS’s management urge community members to be vigilant and refrain from sharing information that may be used against them, compromising their safety and that of their properties. “People should think twice before blowing their horns about their acquired personal belongings,” Mdhluli concluded.
