Last week I had to attend a meeting near the Post office in the centre of town. I had just climbed out of the car when a “Car Guard” appeared out of no where. Startled and feeling vulnerable at being ambushed with nowhere to escape, the “car guard” stood firmly between me and the way out, suggesting they would “look after” my car. I just knew I had to regain lost advantage and regain higher ground and get “insurance” with a negotiating dominance that would ensure the “car guard” would provide satisfactory service delivery.
I applied a creative enforcement of contract approach by using my cell phone to take his portrait when questioned I told him that if any thing was stolen / damaged or not as it should be the SAPS and I would know who to look for
When I returned from my meeting the car guard was within touching distance of my car, as per agreement I gave him a goodwill tip for not leaving my car unprotected.
I mention this because there are a large number of thefts out of motor vehicle incidents through out Port Elizabeth. Theft of motor vehicles is also high.
A few weeks ago our neighbour hood watch noticed a car parked outside the owner’s gate, which was open, on inspection a lap top was seen on the front floor of the vehicle. The patroller woke up the owner who was not very hospitable until they were advised their lap top was in plain sight and bait for those shadows that prey on opportunities that fall into their slippery hands in the middle of the night.
It would appear that a number of people are negligent, leaving cell phones, money and even weapons in their cars. Apart from costing the insurance companies a large mountain of money, this negligence attracts opportunistic thieves in droves to our shopping mall parking areas.
Theft out of motor vehicles is spiking, it is not clear if a syndicate, of organised crime is at work, but judging from media reports, security firm reports and neighbour hood watch patrollers it would be wise to ensure your vehicle is locked and that all valuables are removed.
There is an unconfirmed report that these criminals have some kind of electronic device that when switched on disables or jams our electronic control leaving the car / garage door unlocked.
Don’t just press the button while walking away from your car, stand next to the car make sure it is locked, there is a report that these criminals are scouting the high traffic parking areas and are well organised.
Councillor Stanford Slabbert has presented data to substantiate the suggestion that there is a strong possibility that a well organised group are active in the general shopping areas of Port Elizabeth
The Modus Operandi is simple, the thieves will park at a shopping mall, one person will stay in the vehicle and two will walk around the area. As soon as the suspects identify a possible victim they will jam / disable the vehicle remote and take all the valuables in the car, the person in the waiting car will then pick them up and drive off.
Suspect vehicles used:
- White Corsa Bakkie
- Old Green Mazda hatch, the rear window has blue paint where the window was replaced.
- Blue green Honda (Old shape)
- Ford laser
- Silver Corsa Bakkie
- Silver Jetta / Polo
- Green Polo Playa
- Red Golf
The following cases were recorded from 1 January 2011 to 30 June 2011 (All car doors were opened, no break in of vehicle noted):
Day – Total No. of Cases:
- Friday – 9
- Wednesday – 6
- Sunday – 5
- Tuesday – 4
- Saturday – 3
- Thursday – 3
Time – Total No. of Cases:
- 17:00 to 17:50 – 10
- 18:00 to 18:59 – 5
- 14:00 to 14:59 – 4
- 16:00 to 16:59 – 3
- 12:00 to 12:59 – 3
- 10:00 to 10:59 – 2
- 13:00 to 13:59 – 1
- 11:00 to 11:59 – 1
- 08:00 to 08:59 – 1
Place – Total No. of Cases:
- Emerald Square – 5
- Fig Tree – 4
- Pick Pay Hyper – 4
- 6th Ave Shopping Centre – 3
- Gardens Shopping Cnr – 3
- Kings Court – 2
- Moffet on Main – 2
- Spar Main – 2
- Aberdare Cricket Club – 1
- Builders Warehouse – 1
- Methodist Church – 1
- Spar 1st Ave – 1
- Time Square – 1
These are some of the incidents reported, some victims did not report their cases, perhaps they may have felt negligent or careless, and perhaps they couldn’t remember after such a shock whether they had locked or not locked their vehicle.
We believe that the security personnel being aware of the threat are doing the best they can and take a positive approach to protecting the vehicles parked in the area. These criminals are mobile and move rapidly from one targeted area to another, blending in with the population.
It is vital that all crime incidents are reported as these crime stats are an important tool in crime prevention and allocation of manpower and vehicle deployment to high risk areas.
When the station asks for more manpower and vehicles the guys on top ask WHY? If no crimes have been reported and catalogued in the precinct.
