Notorious Pta West house set alight
Angry residents allegedly took to the streets on Saturday.
A house and a small adjacent Wendy, allegedly notorious for criminal
activities, were set alight on Saturday morning by alleged angry
Pretoria West residents.
According to Tshwane emergency services spokesperson, Johan Pieterse,
the fire department rushed to the scene and extinguished the fire fairly
quickly. He said the house burned but the Wendy house was only engulfed
in smoke.
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“Four residents in the Wendy house were evacuated unharmed. The fire was
doused and the scene cleared.”
He said information from the scene indicate that the house was set
alight due to criminal activities. “But this is a police matter and the
fire department cannot divulge anymore information.”
Pretoria West CPF’s PRO, Thesigan Pillay, confirmed the incident but
said he could not, at this stage, confirm how the fire started or the
motive behind it.
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“Unconfirmed reports indicate that the community set alight a house in
the area after suspecting drug dealings but we are still awaiting the
conclusion of the police investigation. I have scheduled a meeting for
later on Saturday afternoon to sit down with relevant community leaders
to discuss the matter and plan a way forward,” Pillay said.
He said although the CPF understands the community’s frustration, the
CPF still does not condone violence or taking the law into own hands.
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“If you suspect any criminal activity, rather approach the relevant
police and CPF to take the matter further,” Pillay urged.
Police spokesperson Sergeant Ann Poortman also confirmed the incident
but could not give comment as to the motive.
“Police are still investigating and I will only be able to provide more
detail once their investigation has been concluded” she said.
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