Car jamming on the rise at malls in the east of Pretoria
Crimes related to car jamming are on the increase at shopping centres in the east of Pretoria.
Andrea Küsel
Residents in the east of Pretoria have increasingly become targets of so-called car jamming crimes at shopping centres.
Warrant Officer Dave Miller of the Garsfontein police station said multiple incidents of car jamming have been reported from shopping centres in the east.
Criminals use jamming devices to block signals from the vehicle owner’s remote to the car. The vehicle then fails to lock and the owner walks off unknowingly. This way criminals have easy access to vehicles.
In a separate case, Izelle Cowley, a photographer from the east of Pretoria, was robbed of about R70 000 worth of camera equipment at Parkview centre on Wednesday evening.
Her husband, Billy, told Rekord two cameras, a laptop and other photographic equipment was stolen out of the boot of her car.
“We wanted to view footage of the mall security, but they said there were no cameras in the parking area. They only have cameras at the boom gates and inside the mall itself.”
He said the security manager on duty showed them an incident report book which was filled with similar incidents.
Cowley reported the burglary to the Garsfontein police station.
Miller confirmed that multiple incidents have been reported from the Parkview centre, but added it was a problem at malls across the east of Pretoria.
Parkview centre management failed to comment on the issue.
Miller provided the following advice for shoppers:
– Physically check that your car is locked after using a remote. Do not just walk away without feeling if the door is locked.
– Put your belongings in the boot of the vehicle before getting to a centre. Criminals are watching what people take out of their vehicles and what they put in the boot.
– Leave your valuables at home if possible.
– Ensure all valuable belongings are out of sight.
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