Tik crime plagues Cape holiday town
Murders, rape and break-ins in quaint Paternoster
THE West Coast village of Paternoster is known for its whitewashed cottages, fresh crayfish and unspoilt scenery. But this quaint image has been shattered by a crime wave that locals blame on an explosion of tik addiction in the area.
Addicts are targeting guesthouses and stealing from tourists. Locals fear that this will drive away visitors and cripple the village economy.
This week, days after restaurateur Karl Jaentsch was shot dead in his home on a smallholding outside the town, tensions flared in the community and residents said tik addicts were holding them to ransom.
Paternoster has a population of about 2 000 — and at least 70 guesthouses. There is no drug rehabilitation centre in the village and addicts are sent to centres several hours away. The nearest police station is 13km away in Vredenburg.
Petty crime has been a problem in Paternoster for years, but on Thursday last week it took on a more sinister tone with Jaentsch’s murder. Only his cellphone was stolen.
Jaentsch, who owned The Noisy Oyster, was known for handing out cash to the needy. He was shot three times inside his home at about 9.30pm. No arrests have been made, but the locals believe he was targeted by tik addicts because they knew he often carried cash.
The killing has prompted residents to renew their calls to have a satellite police station in the village.
Paternoster Village Tourism chairwoman Rina Wenhold said in the past six months a guest had been raped at an upmarket establishment and there had been two murders.
“People are phoning in and asking: ‘Wow, is this really happening?’ When you book in you are warned to close your doors and lock everything away,” she said.
Derelict “tik houses” can be seen near upmarket guesthouses.
Blame for crime levels has been levelled at crayfish sellers, many of whom are said to use tik. Wenhold said some crayfish sellers walked between guesthouses to see whether there was an opportunity to steal from visitors who might have left windows and doors open.
Several guesthouse owners have hired private security guards.
Women from one of the poorer communities in the village volunteer their time to patrol the streets for about five hours from midnight.
One of them, Christa Taylor, said she often tapped on open windows at 1am, warning guests to close them.
“They sometimes get cross, but we want them to be safe,” she said.
One of the crayfish sellers, a tik addict aged 27, said he had struggled to find work and so he resorted to selling crayfish.
The man, who had fresh sores on his face, said he had not yet turned to breaking into homes, but some of his friends had. He bought tik daily for about R25.
“When you feel powerless, the tik makes you feel like you ate a full meal and gives you energy. You just keep going,” he said.
Guesthouse owner Barbara Gilpin said she and her husband, Terry, had moved from Johannesburg to Paternoster to get away from crime.
She said she had heard of two cancellations at a nearby guesthouse because of Jaentsch’s murder.
“Without the guesthouses here, there will be nothing. We’ll all close up and go,” said Gilpin.
This week, an urgent meeting was held by residents, municipal workers and the police. Western Cape community safety MEC Dan Plato said his department would fund a caravan to be manned by police reservists.
Colonel John Rooi, station commander of Vredenburg’s police station, said the police faced the problem of “unwilling witnesses” — guests who simply wanted their stolen goods returned and had no interest in testifying in a court case.
Speaking in her home in one of the poorer areas, Dalene Jordaan, a member of one of the oldest families in the village, said: “The tik is Paternoster’s biggest problem.”
Her relative Byron Jordaan, 27, was stabbed to death in Paternoster on February 6, allegedly by a relative. Byron’s mother, Annabelle, said he had once been on tik but had given up drugs some time before he died.
She did not understand why some residents were keeping quiet about others carrying out crimes.