Police educate domestic workers and gardeners
According to the CPF chairperson, Nick Nicolaou, the easiest way to commit a robbery is for criminals to persuade workers to allow them access to the employer's property.
More than 80 domestic workers and gardeners from households in the east of Pretoria attended a workshop hosted by the Brooklyn police and the Brooklyn sector 4 community policing forum (CPF) on what they can do to protect themselves and the property of their employers.
According to the CPF chairperson, Nick Nicolaou, the easiest way to commit a robbery is for criminals to persuade workers to allow them access to the employer’s property. “This has become increasingly common in sector 4 where we have seen that criminals use deceit, blackmail or offer a reward to gain access to properties,” Nicolaou said.
“It is important to educate workers since they are at home during the day when the resident is at work or shopping. Most workers see crime as the employer’s problem, but they do not realise that they often become the victims of crime,” Nicolaou added.
The Brooklyn sector 4 CPF offered the following tips:
– Domestic workers can be our best field agents if they know what to look out for or how to report crime and suspicious activity. Give them the telephone numbers of your security company, police station and local CPF.
– It is important to equip your workers with panic buttons.
– Always polygraph your domestic workers and gardeners if there has been an incident at your house. Even if they have worked for you for 30 years they can be swayed.
– Make domestic workers and gardeners aware that they must not give out information relating to their workplace or their employers’ whereabouts, especially to other domestic workers and gardeners.
– Tell them not to open for anyone unless authorised by you. Always suspect people posing as Telkom, SABC or municipal workers, police, repairmen and people in need of medical attention.
The Brooklyn police added the following tips:
– Domestic workers and gardeners should take note of vehicles and people that look suspicious and out of place and report it to the police, owner and/or to the local security company. It is important to take note of details such as the colour and make of a vehicle, registration numbers and a description of the people.
– When workers arrive at work, they must check that there are no strange people or vehicles hanging around near the house. If there are, they must rather keep on walking to prevent an ambush as the gate opens.
– Workers should not talk about their employer’s property and new purchases with friends and strangers. They can never be sure when a potential criminal overhear this information.
– Workers should keep the doors and security gates lock at all time while they are working.
