Vagrant hotspots cleaned up

PLETTENBERG BAY NEWS - A collaborative effort was launched last week to clean up areas where vagrants and loiterers hang out in Plettenberg Bay.

Plettenberg Bay Crime Prevention Association (PBCPA) operations head Otto Olivier said the clean-up operation was done in collaboration with the Bitou law enforcement crime prevention unit.

Olivier said the clean-up was organised on the strength of information they received concerning issues such as stolen goods, drug use and possession, as well as trespassing, in the vicinity of Signal Hill.

Police, local law enforcement and Plett Security Rapid Response Unit members worked together and swept the area. The responders were assisted by instructors from Kalah, a world-renowned self-defence and combat system.

An abandoned building in the area was also cleaned up while PBCPA patrollers and Plett.Watch, the town's neighbourhood watch group, conducted a sweep of the adjacent bushes.

"Upon investigation it became clear that the vagrants have been sleeping and operating from this building for a very long time gauging by the filth and stench," Olivier said. "At the time of the operation, personal property not belonging to the vagrants was identified, along with large amounts of drug paraphernalia. It was also quite clear that this area was being used as a hotspot for various sexual activities."

He said evidence was gathered and documented and is currently being worked through to establish any connection with other pending cases with police.