One man’s trash, a thief’s ‘treasure’
Police have revealed that in the past, houses targeted in robberies have been surveyed for four days and sometimes, weeks on end, before the robbery.
POLOKWANE – When refuse removal day comes, people hardly think about what they throw out and what is left outside their homes for all to see.
Investigations done by police and having spoken to a person who had been a convicted house robber, has revealed that thieves make use of refuse to identify targets to rob.
They look at what people throw away and this in turn gives them an idea as to what can be found inside a house. For example, throwing out a plasma screen box will tell someone that you bought a brand new TV.
Police have revealed that in the past, houses targeted in robberies have been surveyed for four days and sometimes, weeks on end, before the robbery.
Keeping this in mind, police have cautioned people to tear up boxes into smaller pieces and throw them inside black refuse bags, when they throw out rubbish.
“We urge residents to make sure that they do not give away unwanted information to the wrong people by throwing boxes out just the way there are after buying something for their homes,” Polokwane police spokesperson, WO Lesiba Ramoshaba told Review.
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