The Green Point and Oranje-Kloof City Improvement District (GP/OK CID) said it has recorded a significant drop in crime since the beginning of lockdown compared to the previous year.
However, CEO Marc Truss said with the move to level 3, and current restrictions being relaxed, they expect crime rates to rise along with the level of movement.
“Based on our latest arrests and reports, we expect contact crimes to increase, specifically car and truck hijackings, business robberies and house robberies.”
From April 1 to May 31, the GP/OKCIDs reported only 22 incidents of crime compared to 51 incidents in the same period in 2019.
In the first month of lockdown, there were 13 crimes reported compared to 30 in the same period last year.
GPCID’s security manager, Marius Swanepoel said: “We commend our team for being on the front lines during these trying times, working shifts 24/7 despite these stressful circumstances.”
Mr Truss said they constantly urge people to abide by lockdown rules and restrictions as much as possible because it not only protects their health, but also their safety.
Meanwhile, a man was arrested in Camps Bay on Saturday after an attempted mugging in Victoria Road.
Cape Town South district manager at Fidelity ADT, Jade Hanning, said a pedestrian was walking along the road when a suspect armed with a knife attacked him and tried to rob him of his possessions. The victim was however able to fight off the attacker, who then fled the scene.
The WatchCon monitoring team at the Camps Bay Community Safety Initiative (CBCSI) received an alert about this incident, and together with Fidelity ADT started an investigation to try and track down the attacker.
The CBCSI WatchCon team was able to retrieve video footage of the incident which provided them with valuable information about the suspect’s appearance. All role-players including the SAPS were informed and after a five-hour search, the man was found and handed over for arrest to Camps Bay SAPS.
“Entities such as CBCSI WatchCon play an integral part in keeping their community safe and we are pleased with the collaboration shown between ourselves and their team. The combination of a tactical unit, which includes specialised officers, and a camera network is ideal for a search effort. We would like to congratulate all parties involved and thank our officers and team for their efforts,” said Mr Hanning.
