Snippets from a community under siege

Derek More, general manager of Griffin Protection Services, said there had been an increase in people wanting private security in the Upper Highway area.

“There is also a bigger demand for guards at homes, so over and above normal security, people have to pay more for peace of mind,” he said.

“We have had to up the level of our training because of the level of violence and the intensity of crime.

“When there is an outcry from the community, there is additional policing brought in, but only for a month. The railway line is the main source of

He urged the community to get involved in combating crime.

“Policing is the responsibility of the police and crime prevention is our responsibility as the community,” he said. the problem. It needs to be patrolled, but that can’t be done on foot. If police were resourced with quad bikes, it would make it harder for criminals.”

More said his mother, wife and daughters had been attacked in his driveway.

“All the guy said was ‘cellphone, cellphone’. He attacked my 70-year-old mother with a brick and my daughter had to come between them and punch him to protect her,” he said.

Keith Durandt, community development manager at ADT Pinetown, said the level of violence associated with crime had increased. “Police here are

Mkhize pointed to the Chatsworth community, which recently assisted police to arrest several drug dealers, as an example of what can be achieved when the police and the community work together. terribly under-resourced and it’s time the government did something about that.”

Businessman Eric Tocknell said: “We need to go for the jugular and kill crime. Business has been passive, but now there are huge changes and we need to respond.”

Charlton Sibaca, cluster chairman of the Pinetown Community Police Forum (CPF), said whoonga was the main reason for the surge in crime. “When it comes to whoonga, it is the cheapest. If a person is an addict and he does not have money, he is going to commit crime to get it.”

Corné Broodryk, of the

Ngobeni recently appointed a team of skilled detectives and armed police reinforcements to the Outer West area to quell the surge in violent house robberies.

At least nine men have Kloof CPF, said residents were raising money to help build a police station in the area.

“There is a substation and we are looking at the feasibility of making it a full station. The substation is rundown and the building is condemned,” he said.

“We, as a community, understand that fighting crime is the responsibility of the CPF and we do have an understanding that crime prevention is our responsibility.

“We don’t want to take the law into our own hands, but to patrol with the police and keep our streets safe,” Broodryk said. been arrested since the team was assembled.

The team and police reinforcements are expected to remain in the area for two months when the situation will be reassessed.