Crime spikes in slow town

SEDGEFIELD NEWS - The slow town of Sedgefield is fast becoming a hive of criminal activity, with businesses in the town's main street hit in recent weeks, home break-ins – and even a case of attempted rape.

In the latest incident an 87-year-old woman was attacked on Monday evening, August 14 at her home in Flamingo Street at about 23:50, after which her cellphone, some pillows and a watch was stolen.

Knysna police spokesperson Sergeant Chris Spies said the family violence, child protection and sexual offences investigations unit, which is based in George, is investigating a case of house robbery and attempted rape following the incident.

'ATTEMPTED RAPE'
Spies said the victim was in her bed when she discovered that someone was on top of her. "She confronted the suspect and an altercation ensued. The victim sustained minor injuries and was taken to a hospital in George for medical observation, and was discharged later," said Spies.

He asked that anyone with information about this incident contact the investigation officer Constable Zolani Mpendu at 044-803-4621 or 082-335-1200.

The previous night, on Sunday, August 13 at about 20:30, the Aroma Liquor store was broken into with the suspect being caught on camera.

Owner Hennie Louw said this was the second break-in at his store in almost six weeks. The first time, said Louw, the burglar got away with a large amount of cigarettes, some cash and a bottle of whiskey.

BUSINESSES HIT
Spies confirmed that a case of housebreaking and theft was opened on Tuesday, August 15 following the incident.

“The suspect broke a door to the premises to gain entrance … No arrest has been made yet, and investigation into the matter continues,” he said.

This brings the business break-ins over the past few weeks to three – and these are just the incidents brought to the Knysna-Plett Herald's attention.

According to Sedgefield local Mike Young, his home was burgled twice and an ATM was also destroyed recently.

The Knysna detective branch is investigating a case of attempted burglary and arson following the damage of an ATM in Smutsville, August 3, confirmed Spies, stating that preliminary investigation indicated that the suspect/s damaged the ATM and attempted to set it on fire. No arrests have been made and anyone with information about this incident may contact Sergeant Salomé Davidson at 044-302-6652.

POLICING 'INADEQUATE'
Apart from being fed-up, Young is also concerned about what he refers to as the “woefully inadequate facilities with which they (the police) are provided to do what the community expects of them”, referring to the town's satellite police station.

Young has even gone so far as trying to get the police commissioner and the Western Cape police ombudsman involved in the town's historic plight for its own police station, to no avail.

“Many years ago, Sedgefield was promised a proper police station and this simply has not been honoured. I took this up with the acting commissioner last year, and during a meeting with a colonel from Cape Town it was made very clear that nothing was likely to be done in the foreseeable future. I know that the part of Sedgefield where I live is not the only area experiencing such criminality,” he said.

HOUSE BURGLED TWICE
Young’s home in Flamingo Avenue was burgled twice in two days.

The first incident, he said, took place on Thursday, July 27, when the double door of his workshop was forced open by someone using a crowbar.

On this occasion, items worth R15 400 were stolen.

He opened a case that same day, but the police only arrived the next day to take fingerprints, he said.

On Friday morning, Young noticed that his tumble dryer – worth R3 000 – was also missing after seeing a suspicious-looking man jump over the neighbour's wall. This case he also reported.

OFFICERS 'OVERWORKED'
“It is generally noted in Sedgefield that the police are woefully overworked and do not have the facilities required to allow them to react as effectively as they clearly wish. However, I feel that I should record that the assistance given by the police was as good as they could ever manage in such circumstances and I would like to record my sincere thanks. The fact is, more than a decade ago Sedgefield was promised a proper police station, a promise that has not been honoured.”

Young's frustration came when trying to reach the investigating officers of the respective cases he made. After a few days of no contact from the police, Young took it upon himself to make contact.

A call to police on August 1 for which he was put on hold for more than 10 minutes, and a 30km drive to Knysna later, Young said he was only able to leave a message for these two officers as they were out dealing with other matters.

INVESTIGATION ONGOING
“I left the police station with the clear impression that the staff there also try very hard, but they are somewhat overwhelmed by the volume of work,” he added.

Spies confirmed that the Knysna detective branch is currently investigating two cases of housebreaking and theft that were reported during July at a house at Flamingo Avenue, Sedgefield, and added that investigation into these cases has not been finalised yet. “The investigating officer will liaise directly with the complainant regarding progress made in the investigation,” he said.

When asked to comment on Young’s story, Spies said it was very unfortunate that the complainant (Young) struggled to get hold of the investigating officers when he phoned the station, adding that the officers are not office bound as they need to visit crime scenes, obtain statements from witnesses and conduct investigative work in the community.

Regarding a query as to burglaries in Sedgefield in general, Spies did say that burglaries in Sedgefield indicated a slight increase between April 2017 and July 2017 in comparison with the same period during 2016.

“Perpetrators targeted houses with easy access. They gained entrance by forcing doors open, removing burglar bars and breaking windows,” said Spies, adding that most items stolen were electronic or of a small size, and that the police’s analysis also indicated that smaller items close to windows were taken.

“The reporting of incidents is sporadic at this stage, but crime prevention patrols have been increased in the hotspot areas,” he said.