Babobski’s Blog: News and opinions from South Africa and around the world

After a relatively calm period, numerous housebreakings were reported in the upmarket suburb of Wavecrest in Jeffreys Bay over the past weekend.

Mimosa, Pagoda and Poplar Streets as well as Palm Crescent were all targeted but housebreakings took place in other areas of Wavecrest as well.

(Above: The world famous waves of Jeffreys Bay are being threatened by the ever increasing crime wave on land)

Most of the attacks took place after 2 AM and the method of entry was by breaking and entering through windows. In two instances, doors were forced open, one of them being a sliding door.

The brazen thieves even entered homes occupied by residents and the community is urged to make sure that all access points to your homes are secure before going to bed.

The Police are actively working on the problem and several known housebreakers and other suspects will be arrested in the next few days to see if they are linked to the robberies.

A bakkie was also stolen in Wavecrest over the weekend and on a more positive note, an arrest was made in Seetuin Road where a suspect had stolen goods in his possession and is appearing in court today.

Pellsrus was the other crime hotspot over the weekend with housebreakings and assaults being reported. The Ocean View Neighbourhood Watch again conducted foot patrols over the weekend and only one incident was reported from this suburb.

Aston Bay and Paradise Beach were quiet with no reported incidents taking place. Once again the Neighbourhood Watches in these suburbs must be commended for the sterling job they do in keeping crime under control.

A fraud case involved the purchase of a bakkie was laid with the Police. The modus operandi is a “bargain bakkie” is advertised and after the potential buyer has deposited the funds in the seller’s bank account; the seller disappears with the bakkie.

 There was one arrest for drink driving over the weekend and more operations targeting this crime will be held in the near future.

CPF ELECTIONS The elections will be held on 21 September at 18h00 at the Detective offices in St Croix Street. Should your organization not have registered kindly contact Sue Smit for mandate forms at sue@petimberhomes.co.za

A notorious gang leader was shot by a Jeffreys Bay policewoman on Friday night after resisting arrest and attacking and stabbing another policeman who tried to apprehend him.

The drama began in Ocean View at 9 Pm on Friday evening when the gang robbed a resident of the suburb.  The Jeffreys Bay Crime Prevention Unit (CPU), Sector Police and the CPF were all in the vicinity and chased the suspects, who fled across the Aston Bay road towards Pellsrus.

Inspector Hayward, the sector manager in charge of Ocean View and Pellsrus knew where the gang’s territory was and quickly coordinated the police to circle the area.

The fleeing gang leader was apprehended in-between shacks and when the Police tried to arrest him, he stabbed a policeman in the upper arm. He then attacked other policewoman who evaded the attack and in defending her life, she shot the suspect in the back.

The suspect was then placed under arrest and transferred to Livingstone hospital.  He faces charges of attempted murder and assault with the intent to do grievous body harm.

After witnessing the drama unfold, the Jeffreys Bay CPF wishes to add its voice to the growing calls to clear the confusion surrounding Section 49 of the Criminal Procedure Act that hinders the Police in the performance of their duties.  It is nothing short of a ludicrous situation when a police officer still has to try apply the policy of minimum force when their lives are in danger.

The Act reads that:

“Where arrest is called for, force may be used only where it is necessary in order to carry out the arrest.

“Where force is necessary, only the least degree of force reasonably necessary to carry out the arrest may be used.

Shooting a suspect solely in order to carry out an arrest is permitted in very limited circumstances only.”

Friday’s night’s incident highlights how easily the Jeffreys Bay community could have been mourning the death of two police members.  When a criminal puts a Police officers’ life in danger and there is hesitation and split decisions that need to be made in the heat of battle about how to deal with the situation, then changes to the Criminal Procedure Act must be made.

A shoot to kill policy when under attack by dangerous criminals may not solve all the crime problems facing our country but our Police officers must be able to defend themselves when their lives and the lives of our community are in danger without fear of recrimination.

 Four robbers armed with assault rifles and hand guns were apprehended in the centre of Jeffreys Bay on Monday just after dark after a high speed car chase.

Acting on information received from the community, well known businesswomen Cheron Kraak hired a private investigator who determined that she was the target of criminals whose plan of action was to rob her at her home in Wavecrest.

The gang had decided to conduct a reconnaissance of Kraak’s house at 7 pm and then hit the house at around 2 am. Once the vehicle started moving towards the residential area of Jeffreys Bay the Police, who had mobilized a task team, moved in and tried to force it to stop.

Weapons were thrown out of the window and after a dramatic car chase, the driver of the mini bus was forced to stop in Woltemade Street, ironically just up the road from the Police Station.

The well armed Policemen dragged the suspects from the vehicle and had them handcuffed within seconds. The suspects were then taken to the police station for questioning.

The R4 and R5 rifles that were thrown out of the window were stolen from an army base in Mthatha and a private security firm in Gauteng and will be checked to see if they are linked to any other crime scenes. The mini bus is licensed in Tsolo in the former homeland of Transkei.

Three of the suspects come from the same area and the Police are investigating to determine whether they are wanted on other charges.

Kraak was thankful for the prompt response by the Police and said that criminals must know that the J’Bay community had declared war on criminals. “The arrest of these thugs proves how well the community and the Police can work together in the fight against crime”, said Kraak. “We are sending out a message to criminals that they are not welcome in our town and that they going to get taken out.”

The Jeffreys Bay Community Police Forum (CPF) agreed with Kraak’s statement and said that all the communities in the town were mobilizing to help the Police win the war against crime. Brenton Williams from the CPF said that on Friday night foot patrols were conducted in Ocean View by residents who were sick of being terrorized by gangsters. “Joint operations by the Aston Bay, Paradise Beach and Wavecrest Neighbourhood Watches, in conjunction with the Police has seen a dramatic reduction in crime in those suburbs”, said Williams. “We must remain vigilant as criminal elements are always seeking soft targets. However the syndicates from out of town that are trying their luck are discovering that our community will fight back.”

There has been a spike in house breakings in Wavecrest with another two incidences occurring last night. It appears that criminals are gaining access through burglar bars and through unprotected doors.

 Residents living in older houses are urged to check their burglar bars as in many instances, it is easy for criminals to loosen them and gain entry. The current modus operandi of the criminals in Wavecrest is to target houses that are occupied.

It does not matter what age the inhabitants are as pensioners as well as young people have been robbed whilst in their homes. The time frame that criminals have been invading homes is between 10pm and 4am.

However, the Jeffreys Bay Police have urged residents to be aware and take safety precautions from sunset as it appears that houses have been watched before the criminals decide who to target. Make sure outer doors and security doors are locked. Unprotected windows must be locked and an inspection of your burglar bars must be carried out to ensure it will not be easy for criminals to gain access.

Laptops, cell phones, cash and guns are what the criminals have been seeking when robbing houses. It is suspected that locals are involved and the Police are following several leads. A well known house breaker has recently been released from jail and is being sought by the Police for questioning.

 Ongoing operations involving the CPF, the Police, Security companies and the neighbourhood watches will be taking place until the situation is under control. Residents must also take note that ATM’s are being monitored by criminals and the necessary precautions must be taken when drawing cash, especially when the surrounding area seems deserted

Following a second violent house robbery in Paradise Beach, the Police, the Neighbourhood Watches, CPF and security companies worked through the night on Sunday and managed to arrest 5 suspects and recover stolen goods.

Superintendent Ntsabo the commanding officer of the Jeffreys Bay Police Station thanked the members of the community at the monthly meeting of the Community Police Forum (CPF) last night as well as Smhart Security who were involved in tracking down the suspects.

“We are taking a zero tolerance towards criminals in the town and we will catch them” said Ntsabo.

Proving that the J’Bay Police mean business 15 “A” arrests have been made since Friday. These arrests are for crimes like assault, murder rape, drunk driving and house breakings while 17 “B” arrests have been made for crimes such as loitering, drunk and disorderly and traffic offences like jumping stop streets.

Ocean View/Pellrus remain the hotspot suburbs with crimes ranging from house breakings, domestic violence and assault with knives taking place. An attempted house breaking took place in Paradise Beach but the Police made an arrest and thwarted the attempt. A house breaking took place in Nautilus Street C-Place last night where a door was forced open to gain access.

Two businesses in the CBD were targeted and windows were broken to try gain access. Business owners are urged to take proper security measures to ensure they do not become the victim of criminals as there is an upswing in this type of crime in Jeffreys Bay.

WINNER OF THE STEPHEN BIBB PAINTING

The lucky winner of the painting donated by the world renowned artist Stephen Bibb was announced at the CPF meeting last night. Graham Veitch from Paradise Beach is the CPF member who signed up and won the lucky draw and will be handed the painting at next months CPF meeting.

“This is one of the worst weekends Jeffreys Bay has ever experienced crime wise”. This comment comes from a long serving law enforcement officer in J’Bay as 11 houses were robbed and 8 serious assaults took place during a black weekend in our small town.

Tourists to J’Bay were also targeted and two tent sites were hit over the weekend in the Jeffreys Bay caravan park.

Stoves and petrol were stolen and one of the tents was cut open and possessions removed.

A number of assaults took place in Pellsrus/Ocean View that can be directly attributed to shebeens operating after closing time. The Police have undertaken to target this crime but need support from the Municipality as many of the laws being broken are actually municipal by laws and need to be policed by the Kouga Law Enforcement officers.

Two attempted murders took place in Pellsrus both involving knives. One robbery took place outside Spur. The Police have leads on this case and arrests will follow shortly.

C-Place experienced a crime wave over the weekend with 3 house breakings taking place in the suburb. Pellsrus/Ocean View were the other suburbs where a number of house breakings took place.

Again some of these house breakings appear to be related to alcohol abuse. There was one house breaking in Wavecrest. In many of these instances burglar bars were forced to gain entry.

Please take care when walking on the beach alone, especially women. A lady from Jeffreys Bay was harassed at the Supers car park on Saturday morning by two men.

Luckily a dog came to her rescue and tried to bite one of the harassers. The two men were chased away and seem to part of the crew that hangs on the corner at Surfer Girl.

This is not the first incident of this nature along the Supers beach and the Community Police Forum (CPF) has organized regular raids of the Supertubes Park to ensure criminals don’t use the Park as a base for their activities.

Aston Bay/Paradise Beach were once again the quiet suburbs in Jeffreys Bay. This is probably due to the crime prevention operation that took place in the suburbs last weekend and the highly active neighbourhood watches that brook no nonsense in their communities.

Renowned Jeffreys Bay artist Stephen Bibb has joined the war against crime in Jeffreys Bay. Stephen has donated one of his paintings that will be given to an individual or an organization that has signed up as a member of the J’Bay Community Police Forum (CPF) by the end of June 2009.

“Safety and security is an extremely emotive issue in this country, it is time that we all started coming together as communities and taking back the streets from this scourge that is sucking the life from this land” said Bibb, who is well known for his surf art.

(above: Stephen Bibb oil painting on board.  Ocean dreams)

He urged people to join up with the CPF “We are realizing very swiftly that the only way to stand up against these cowardly gangsters and brutal thugs, who prey on the decent and largely defenceless public, relying largely on our fear and our apathy, is to become involved in defending our communities in any way that we can”.

“By joining the CPF and getting on the mailing list that’ll keep you up to date on what’s really happening in your community in the fight against crime.

Becoming more vigilant and security-conscious, all of us will be contributing to the solution and helping the dedicated men and women who make our town and ultimately our country a safe place for all of us”.

Check out Stephen’s art at his website at www.stephenbibbart.com

CRIME UPDATE

Drink driving was targeted over the weekend in Jeffreys Bay and five arrests were made by Kouga traffic officials.

Numerous drivers received warnings and others were fined for a variety of offences. Residents must take note that drink driving will not be tolerated by the Kouga Municipality’s Law Enforcement officials. Regular operations targeting drink driving will be held in conjunction with the Police, the neighbourhood watches and the CPF.

A highly successful anti crime operation was held on Friday night in Jeffreys Bay. The Police helicopter helped officers on the ground flush out suspected house breakers as well as providing aerial visibility during the evening.

The Aston Bay and Paradise Beach Neighbourhood Watches were joined by CPF members from Pellsrus and Wavecrest, the Police Crime Prevention Unit, Security companies and the Police Sector managers in a show of force in the suburbs.

Road blocks, foot patrols and vehicle patrols ensured the suburbs were safe before the Watches moved off into Wavecrest to assist police with visible policing and stop and search operations.

Despite Law Enforcements best efforts, a rape still occurred in Pellsrus/Ocean View over the weekend and a murder occurred in Wavecrest. The rape appears to be alcohol related while the murder is under intensive investigation and several leads are being followed up by the Jeffreys Bay detectives.

PHONING THE POLICE STATION

The CPF has received a number of complaints from the community that it is difficult trying to contact the police station and that calls are often not answered.

After an investigation by the CPF the following has been established:

Phoning 10111 from a cell phone can land the caller up at a police station literally anywhere in the country. The cell phone relays the call to a receiver or cell phone tower. It does happen that a call can be routed to a receiver in a different town from where the call in being made. This means phoning 10111 from a cell phone in Jeffreys Bay can be routed to a police station in Port Elizabeth for example.

The numbers of the police station which are found in the telephone book are also incorrect. Back office numbers have some inexplicable reason been supplied and that is the reason why phones are not being answered especially after office hours.

The correct numbers are the correct numbers to phone:

Community Service Centre : 042-2006802 / 2006803
The above number is the one to phone at the Charge Office

Fire-Arm Licenses : 042-2006835 / 2006841
Sector Managers : 042-2006844
Detective Services : 042-2006600 / 2006627
Stock Theft Unit : 042-2007000 / 2007026

SIGN UP AS A MEMBER OF THE CPF

Renowned Jeffreys Bay artist Stephen Bibb has joined the war against crime. Stephen has donated one of his paintings to the CPF and will be given to an individual or an organization that has signed up as a member of the CPF by the end of June 2009.

The giclee archival reproduction is called golden sunrise. Application forms can be obtained by emailing the secretary of the CPF, Sue Smit on sue@petimberhomes.co.za The completed form must be returned to Sue by the end of June.

The CPF wishes to thank Stephen for his contribution to keeping our community safe. Check out his website at www.stephenbibbart.com

The J’Bay Police were again hard at work this weekend and made sure shebeens (illegal taverns) closed down at the legal closing time. These actions again saw a drop in contact related crimes in Ocean View/Pellrus over the weekend.

However, there were reported assaults in J’Bay Central, Mondplaas and C Place. There were house breakings in Wavecrest, Aston Bay and Ocean View/Pellsrus. Two bicycles were stolen in Noorsekloof Road and a business was robbed in Da Gama Road.

There was a rape reported from Tjoksville and Police are investigating. One drink driving arrest was made in C Place and residents are warned that a drink driving operation will take place this coming weekend in Jeffreys Bay.

House breakings have occurred in Humansdorp where suspects are gaining access through the roof. This modus operandi has not spread to Jeffreys Bay yet but residents are urged not to leave ladders lying around at night, thereby making it easier for criminals.

A visitor to Jeffreys Bay was robbed at the Nedbank ATM last weekend whilst drawing money. This incident occurred during the day and residents are urged to be aware and remain vigilant when using ATM’s.

The Police have announced that 64 stolen motor vehicles were recovered from the East London area. It is unclear at this stage whether any of the recovered vehicles come from Jeffreys Bay, but it is suspected that syndicates from the former Ciskei region have been active in the town.

A massive crime prevention operation took place in Jeffreys Bay on Friday night that involved Police from Humansdorp, Traffic officials from the Kouga Municipality, the CPF, Security Companies, the Jeffreys Bay Crime Prevention Unit and the Sector Policemen.

In 2008 I was elected onto the executive of the local Community Police Forum (CPF). The CPF is the only community organization in South Africa that operates under an act of Parliament.  This means the CPF has the powers to accompany the Police when they perform their duties and is mandated to do cell visitations to monitor jail conditions at the local police station amongst other functions.

Here is a story about a night in the life of a Jeffreys Bay policeman.

On Friday night a massive crime prevention operation took place in Jeffreys Bay that involved Police from Humansdorp, Traffic officials from the Kouga Municipality, the CPF, Security Companies, the Jeffreys Bay Crime Prevention Unit and the Sector Policemen. 

A seizure operation on an illegal shebeen (tavern) had been planned and in a well co-ordinated operation about 13 police vans and a flat bed truck moved into the shanty suburb of Ocean View.  The objective was to close down the shebeen, confiscate the liquor and if possible even the fridges, which would all be used as evidence in the prosecution of the owner. 

All those involved in the operation met at the local police station at 8 pm for a final briefing.  Firstly everybody dispersed through the suburbs of the town as a show of force to display that all the arms of Jeffreys Bay Law Enforcement meant business that night. 

After a relatively quiet week crime was on the rise in town. A spike in theft from motor vehicles had been experienced as well as a few cars that had been stolen.  The streets were patrolled looking for known faces as a few habitual criminals were back on the streets after being released from prison. 

The first of a number of arrests for drunk driving also occurred.  Youngsters who were endangering their own and other people’s lives by doing donuts outside the municipal building in the main road and jumping stop streets at high speed soon saw the cells at the police station start to fill up. 

When the raid on the shebeen took place, the Crime Prevention Unit stopped outside the converted house and quickly moved in to clear the illegal tavern of its customers.  While some policemen stayed outside to guard the police vans against possible attack, others moved in to assist with the confiscation of crates and crates of beer and other drinks. 

Once the liquor was dropped off at the police station, the paperwork began.  Itemizing every bottle of beer and the cash was a painstaking affair, to ensure that no mistakes were made that could be challenged in court after all the hard and dangerous work had been completed. 

Then it was backs to the streets to sort out fights that had broken out, attend to requests for help from the public who were being robbed and domestic violence cases that kept being reported throughout the night. Other night clubs and taverns that had been operating past their permissible closing times were visited by the Police and told to obey the law. 

While cruising down Diaz Road at 2 am, an alert policeman spotted a violent and habitual criminal from Thornhill lurking amongst the cars and looking suspicious.  The close co-operation within the Kouga Law Enforcement branches quickly revealed that the man was on bail from a case and that there was another suspect operating with him who was wanted by the Thornhill Police. 

Arrests were made for more traffic offences as well as assaults which had caused the cells to fill up. By 4 am Jeffreys Bay started to slumber off and the dedicated individuals from all the Law Enforcement agencies that are tasked with keeping us safe in our beds at night headed home to catch a few hours of well deserved sleep.

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