Patrollers tackle crime in Roodekrans, Wilro Park
Patroller team Siyabangena made a huge impact over their two days patrolling Roodekrans and Wilro Park.
Wilro Park and Roodekrans residents can rest easy knowing that their streets are safer thanks to the Siyabangena patrollers.
Siyabangena is an initiative by the Gauteng Department of Community Safety. It involves vetted and trained residents who conduct various crime prevention activities.
According to the Siyabangena administrator of Johannesburg Corridor Participant Stations, Louis Walker, the programme has yielded excellent results in past operations.
• Also read: New crime prevention initiative launched
“The Roodepoort team is often seen deployed in hotspots that are identified as high crime areas in the Roodepoort CBD, but are occasionally deployed in other areas and sectors in the Roodepoort policing district, as the need arises,” Walker says.
According to Sector Specialised Operations Patrollers (SSOP) patrol captain Leon Marinus, getting the Roodepoort Siyabangena team to expand their patrols into Sector 1 of the Roodepoort policing precinct has been in the works for several weeks, and eventually came to fruition on February 11.
“The team took to the streets of Roodekrans and Wilro Park to great effect, scoring excellent results from the get-go,” he says.
“One-half of the team started at the Ridgegate Shopping Centre in Roodekrans working its way toward Ontdekkers Road, while the other half started from Ontdekkers Road working down.
“Along the way, they stopped and searched every person they encountered on the street, some welcoming the initiative while others were less enthusiastic about being searched.
“Nevertheless, the success of the patrol speaks for itself,” says Marinus, adding that the patrollers confiscated numerous dangerous weapons just in the first few hours of their patrol.”
Local businesses were quick to recognise the benefits of having patrollers secure their area, with Pick n Pay Wilro Park getting on board to sponsor lunch for the team.
The team extended their patrol on February 12 to cover an even wider area.
“I am extremely thankful for the Roodepoort Siyabangena team, and I hope we can work together much more frequently in the future,” Marinus concludes.
