Police in crime prevention meet-up with staff of 24-hour businesses
KUCHING: The central police station here held a dialogue session on crime prevention with workers of 24- hour outlets and petrol stations under its administrative jurisdiction, here yesterday.
Station officer-in- charge ASP Ahmad Abang, who chaired the session, said the inaugural meeting was held to impart useful tips to the workers on preventing crime – robberies in particular – from taking place at their workplace.
Currently, the police station oversees 17 convenience stores and petrol stations that operate on a 24-hour basis.
“The meeting will hopefully impart some useful knowledge on what to do when you ‘sniff’ that a crime is about to happen.
“Among the modus operandi of robbery suspects is that one would wait outside while another heads inside on the pretext of buying something. If they are wearing a full- face helmet, it is better to alert the police quickly,” he told those in attendance.
He added that operators must ensure security cameras at their premises are functioning, to make it easier for police to identify suspects in the event of a crime taking place.
For staff working in the graveyard shift, Ahmad reminded them to always keep the door of the premises closed at all times, and to always be wary of customers who refuse to take off their motorcycle helmets
“You can also request for police assistance should you notice suspicious characters loitering in the vicinity of the premises.”
Ahmad revealed that up till last month, one premises under its jurisdiction – at Gambier Street – was robbed, in which a man threatened a cashier with a machete before escaping with about RM300, taken from the cash register.