One murder, two rapes and 41 drug-related arrests, as well as robberies and cases of domestic violence and aggravated assault, were among the 144 crimes reported to Athlone police in the past five months.
This is according to Athlone police chief Colonel Junaid Alcock, who spoke to about 50 people at a public meeting at Bokmakierie Primary School on Thursday last week.
There had also been nine copper-theft-related arrests during those five months, he said.
There had been an increase in aggravated robberies in Hazendal and Bokmakierie, he said, noting that 12th Avenue in Bokmakierie was a hot spot for that crime, and most of the cases were reported on Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays.
E-hailing taxi drivers were also being robbed in Bokmakierie by criminals posing as customers, he said.
“There will be a hard approach towards crime in the area,” he said.
Most crime in the area was committed between 9am and noon and from 2pm to 5pm, he said.
Crime syndicates in the Vygieskraal shanty town were robbing people and breaking into homes in the area, he said.
“We know that SAPS service delivery in the community needs to improve. There are still too many people phoning in saying phones are not being answered. We will do something about corrupt police officers, but so far I’ve received no complaints. We’ve achieved so much in the ten months I’ve been here and received so much positiveness from the community,” he said.
Working with the community police forum, the ward councillor and various other organisations, the police could make Athlone what it should be, he said.
“We can’t work in silos anymore. It’s at a slow pace, but we are achieving much more than the station did ten months ago. We can get crime under control in Bokmakierie. Our youth and schools need support.”
Bokmakierie resident Aziza Kannemeyer said the derelict toilet and ticket office under the bridge at the bus stop on Klipfontein Road had been attracting all sorts of criminality for more than two years. People were doing drugs there and there had been robberies in the vicinity, she said.
“It’s being raised on a continuous basis, and you are still taking notes, but no one does anything. It’s a question about a deadline. What will be done and when?”
The situation, she said, was similar to the derelict ticket office at the Athlone train station.
“There’re people living in there now. We need commitment and action,” she said.
Ward councillor Rashid Adams said the ward faced many issues, but residents should unite and play their part. Good communication was necessary to solve problems, but those problems would also not be solved overnight, he said.
He said there were plans to upgrade the field opposite Bokmakierie Primary School, but he couldn’t say when.
“We need to take responsibility amongst ourselves so that we can better our community. We are here to assist with the development of community, but can’t do that if we have people intent on breaking the community down. Children are still walking around and not in school. Young children are sent to the shops while adults are at home. We don’t have to love each other to work with each other. Stop looking at past ways of doing things, we are living in different times,” he said.
