Despite extra measures being taken by Laudium residents to curb crime, as the police and the Laudium CPF are failing the community in protecting them, crime still continues.
This, as residents continue to fork out huge amounts of money, to protect themselves and their property, even contributing towards the street security gates. However, the areas where streets are cordoned off by street security gates, manned by security guards, do not seem to have the effect of deterring criminals from entering these areas.
This follows the Laudium Sun yet again receiving complaints of a house situated on a gated street, being burgled. This time, thieves managed to enter a house on Corundum Street, last Monday evening (July 13), despite the street having security gates and homes being closely situated. The thieves broke into the house at around 10:30pm, while the owner Sunita Naidoo and her family were not at home and managed to get away with the many items, including electric items, cash and even clothes, before running away without been spotted by the local cops, the CPF patrollers or even the security guards.
Sunita’s domestic worker, Nabeela Niki, told the Laudium Sun, “The theft occurred while we were not at home and we only came to know about it when one of our neighbours called and informed us that the owner’s house had been broken into. We were all very shocked and worried when we received the call, because non of us were at the property at that time and we had no clue as to what or how much was stolen. My boss then immediately drove back home and when we got home we noticed that the house had been ransacked, as the thieves had searched all the cupboards. With the help of our neighbours’ CCTV footage, we were able to see the timing of the break-in and it clearly showed that there were two Black thieves involved in the incident. I saw how they moved around the yard and gained entry into the house by breaking the front door. It was very disturbing to watch the footage. The thieves stole a number of items. My boss is still trying to figure out what exactly was stolen. But we could see that clothes, electric items and an amount of cash were among the items that were stolen. We noticed that they worked quickly and seemed to know what they were doing, which made us feel that this was not their first time committing such a crime. My boss said that the loss was not only about the items stolen, but also the feeling of our safety that was compromised. I strongly feel that crime on our street is really increasing, as we have heard about other thefts and break-ins happening in the area recently. I now feel more concerned than ever about security and I believe that something needs to be done to prevent this kind of crime from continuing. I think that more police patrols, stronger community awareness and improved security measures are necessary to protect residents. Although there is a street gate in place, homes are still being attacked by criminals and crime is not coming down. This incident has left us feeling uneasy and I hope that the authorities will take this matter seriously and ensure that the community can live in a more peaceful environment.”
Siddick Nagdee, another resident of Corundum Street, told the Laudium Sun, “Although there is a street gate in our area, crime is still continuing. I am truly frustrated by constantly hearing about break-ins, petty theft and other incidents taking place around us. It becomes very exhausting to live in an environment where such issues are becoming normal and it feels like no matter what measures are put in place, criminals are always finding ways to take advantage of the situation. The gating system has provided some level of control, but it is clearly not enough to stop what is happening, especially at times during the day, when the gate remains open. During the daytime, there is regular movement of people going in and out and it becomes extremely difficult to monitor who belongs in the area and who does not. I have noticed that there is no proper supervision at certain times, which creates an opportunity for criminals to enter without being questioned. Even though it is understandable that controlling access at all times is not easy, the current situation leaves too many gaps that criminals can exploit. I believe that relying only on a gate without proper monitoring or enforcement is not an effective solution in the long run. I feel that stronger policing and CPF patrols together with better crime control systems need to be introduced to deal with the level of crime we are experiencing. There should also be stricter access control measures, to ensure that residents feel safe in their own neighbourhood. I also think that there needs to be better co-ordination within the community so that people remain alert and report anything unusual immediately. Living with constant concern is not something anyone should have to accept and I strongly believe that more decisive action is required to improve safety in our area. If nothing changes, such incidents will continue and we will keep feeling vulnerable in a place that is supposed to be secure.”
still continues, even though there is a security
gate in their area.