Looted for precious heirlooms
Century-old jewels taken in robberies
TWO Durban families have been left shattered after century-old heirlooms, brought to South Africa by their indentured forefathers, were recently stolen during house robberies.
One was a 158-year-old safe that weighed around a ton and, the other, a gold chain and pendant.
The black safe, which has a brass handle and emblems, and made the voyage from India to South Africa by ship with its owner, a young Indian indentured labourer, was taken during a robbery in Ottawa.
The thieves also made off with the jewellery stored inside for safekeeping, valued at around R200 000.
“My paternal grandfather (Sharma Maharaj) came to South Africa in 1860 as an indentured labourer.
“The safe was gifted to him by his father as a reminder of his home and family in India and, for our family, it has been a symbol of where we came from,” said Garene Maharaj.
She added that before her grandfather’s death, he had given the safe to her now late father, Bhaskarduth Lutchmonpersad Maharaj, and her mother, Premsundree, 77.
But robbers, not daunted by the prospect of stealing a one ton safe, managed to get it off her parents property, together with a refrigerator, washing machine, television and microwave.
A neighbour had notified her relative about the burglary.
She said her mother, who had suffered a stroke in July, had relocated to Gauteng to live with her.
She was “completely devastated” that the safe and wedding jewellery were gone.
Maharaj, who arrived in Durban a few days later, believes robbers had been JEWELLERY thieves are targeting IndianAmericans in the US, the police have said, adding the community is being preyed on because of the expensive jewellery associated with their customs and culture. The police said the latest theft took place at a motel owned by an Indian-American family in Norwalk in Connecticut.
Police officials showed a surveillance video of the jewellery heist in the hopes of catching the thieves responsible, Fox 8 live news reported.
The thieves stole $20 000 worth of ornate jewellery from the owner’s living quarters before fleeing.
Investigators said the suspects have been committing similar crimes across the country and are believed to be targeting Indian-Americans.
“This group is very organised. They’re probably moving on to another location and are going to do the same thing,” said Sergeant Seth Fry.
He said it appeared the group may be checking online records to identify businesses owned by Indian-Americans and are likely pawning the jewellery.
“They could take it to a pawn shop. They could take it to a jeweller and have it melted down and made into something else, there’s many different ways they could get rid of that,” he said. monitoring the property and had possibly broke in twice.
“They must have seen the community newspapers piled up near the post box and realised no one was home.
“When I arrived, the front door was unlocked and the burglar bars on the window were pulled apart.”
She said the kitchen door was broken with a crowbar, which led her to believe EXPENSIVE jewellery is better off left in a safety deposit box than a home safe, cautioned police.
“Residents believe keeping jewellery in their own safes will prevent it from being stolen but, in most home invasions, the first thing robbers ask for are the keys or codes to the safe because they know this is where the most valuable items are kept,” said police spokesperson, LieutenantColonel Thulani Zwane.
He added that apart from safety deposit boxes being a safer option, it would also keep families safe.
“You are putting yourselves and your families at risk by keeping items of extremely high value, and large sums of cash, at home.”
Prem Balram, of Reaction Unit South Africa, believed a syndicate was operating in Verulam.
“We had a case where jewellery worth R1 million was stolen last year and, more recently, we had two cases where jewellery worth more than R200 000 was taken.”
He said the stolen jewellery was sometimes smashed with a hammer, so it could not be identified.
“It is then sold to pawn shops for its weight. In most cases, family members and workers are the ones who are behind the robberies, as they tip off criminals.” they had later returned. In a bid to retrieve the safe, the family has offered a R2 000 reward.
In the second incident, a family from Oaklands, in Verulam, suffered a similar fate when a century-old gold chain and pendant was stolen.
The head of Reaction Unit South Africa, Prem Balram, said the chain was passed down four generations and held sentimental value. Other jewellery, including 18 carat gold mungal sutra earrings, a 22 carat Kruger coin, rings, chains and bracelets worth about R250 000 were taken.
Antique shop owner Nicola Oosthuizen said the value of the safe could possibly be R38 000.
“The stolen safe has probably ended up with a scrap metal dealer because of its weight. This is a rare item. I have been in the business for over 20 years and I have only seen one.”
A jewellery expert, who declined to be named, said the chain and pendant back then would have cost around R150. It would now be valued at around R150 000, depending on the weight.