Park users warned to take care

Hiker relives mugging ordeal

PARK users have been cautioned not to make use of the Kleinplaas area in Simon’s Town. Table Mountain Watch spokesperson Andre van Schalkwyk said they didn’t believe the area was safe.

Kleinplaas has experienced 20 muggings since 2015, six of those with firearms. Van Schalkwyk believes there may have been more which had gone unreported.

There were four muggings between May and November last year and there have been two muggings this year.

The total number of muggings in the Table Mountain National Park (TMNP) last year stood at 43. This year, 12 muggings have been recorded to date.

Danie Moolman was accosted by two men while walking back to his friends in the Kleinplaas area. He was walking his two dogs at the time. One of the perpetrators kicked his dog.

“I had an uneasy feeling as there were random cars driving around the area. I was making my way back to my buddies when I noticed two guys ahead of me,”he said.

Moolman said the duo waited until he was about 2m away before pulling out knives and demanding his belongings. “I told them I didn’t have anything. I had my phone and car keys in my hand at the time. They got closer to me.… I dropped my backpack and started to run, they started chasing me.”

Moolman then screamed out to his buddies. “When they (the attackers) saw I was not alone, they ran away. I told my friends what had happened and told them we need to go. They took what they could and we left.”

On the way to their cars, they noticed a bigger group of hikers whom they informed about the incident. They received assistance and were able to retrieve some of their kit. However, Moolman did not find all of his belongings which were in his backpack.

“I called a guy I knew at Search and Rescue and told him what had happened. The park ranger took about 10 to 15 minutes to arrive.”

Moolman opened a case four days later. Rangers at TNMP classified the incident as an attempted mugging.

Police spokesperson Captain FC van Wyk confirmed that a case of a robbery with a weapon other than a firearm (a knife) had been registered for investigation at Simon’s Town SAPS.

“Our detectives are following up on all leads… In the interest of personal safety, it is advisable to explore trails in groups. We appeal to the public not to approach suspects, as they are armed and dangerous,” said Van Wyk.

“We are puzzled at the TMNP label of ‘attempted mugging’ because he had two pairs of climbing shoes, a backpack and other items taken. He estimated the value of kit at up to R6000.

“A pair of climbing shoes will set you back R2 000. Why were SAPS not immediately called by the rangers on the day? We had to request Danie to open a case in Stellenbosch, which meant Simon’s Town SAPS had no record/case until three or four days after the fact,” said Van Schalkwyk.

SANParks TMNP Cape regional communications manager Lauren Howard Clayton said the victim voluntarily dropped his belongings “which contained inexpensive goods and ran away, alerting his friends of the suspects”.

“That is when the suspects grabbed his belongings and fled… Therefore, it was an attempted mugging as the victim was not physically assaulted and he voluntarily gave up his goods,” said Clayton.

She added that TMNP had appointed 55 tourism monitors last month to increase the staff complement to perform duties including crime prevention, immediate crime response, search and rescue operations and visitor information and guidance services.