Residents in Laudium remain highly concerned about the ongoing crime in the area, despite posts on social media from the Laudium CPF alleging that the CPF is regularly patrolling the streets of Laudium, in addition to the normal police patrols.
However, several residents claim that many of the CPF members, especially Chairperson, Shaheen Wahab, seem to be more interested in shadowing Cllr Patel, than focusing on crime in the area. This follows yet again, reports of crime this week, with one of the latest being an armed robbery in the gated area of Taj Street in Laudium. The robbery took place this past Tuesday afternoon (July 22) at around 5pm, when a motor cycle delivery rider, delivering medicine, was attacked by thugs.
Gift Maringa, from Ayoba Pharmacy in Raslouw, was robbed at gunpoint by three African thugs at the corner of Taj Street and Apex Crescent in Laudium, despite the street having security gates. Dhishaan Darmalingam, the assistant manager at Ayoba Pharmacy, told the Laudium Sun, “I am aware of the robbery involving Gift Maringa, one of our delivery riders. He was on his way to Laudium to deliver medication to a client on Taj Street, on Tuesday at around 5pm, when three African males approached him, pointed a gun at him and demanded his delivery motorbike. The bike is a red Big Boy, registration number LT96LKGP. They also took his Samsung cellphone and the parcel of medication meant for the customer. Gift wasn’t physically hurt, but he’s extremely traumatised. We gave him some time off to recover. Crime in Laudium seems to be getting worse by the day. Incidents like these are costing us customers and putting our staff at risk. I hope we can at least recover the bike and the phone. We’ve opened a case at the Laudium Police Station and were told that an investigation is underway. It’s really concerning that crime continues to rise in Laudium, even with the street gates and security measures in place across the area. This has to stop. We’re trying to do business and serve our community by delivering vital medication to those who are not well, at their homes, but if delivery riders are being targeted like this, how are we supposed to operate? This level of crime is unacceptable and needs urgent attention.”
drivers are being targeted like this, adding that this level of crime is unacceptable.
Ebrahim Mohideen of Taj Street, Laudium, told the Laudium Sun, “The street gates have been a help, but more still needs to be done to secure the area. People come and go, as we are not allowed to stop them or restrict entry, until we get permission from the Council. Thus, many times the guards are not even sure who is entering or leaving. That’s why it’s so important for everyone, especially the security guards and the patrollers, to stay vigilant and be constantly aware of what’s happening around us. We can’t afford to have incidents of crime like this repeating. If it happens once, it can happen again and the situation could escalate. That’s exactly what we want to prevent. So, we’re committed to working on this ongoing crime and see what further steps we can take to strengthen our security.”
Namritha Rugbar of Apex Crescent, told the Laudium Sun, “I heard about the attack on the pharmacy delivery rider and it was truly shocking to me, more so as we have gates. The poor guy was delivering essential medication, yet criminals still targeted him. How can something like this happen? It’s heartbreaking. There seems to be no law enforcement presence at all. Criminals are acting openly and without fear and that tells you everything about the state of our community. Our law enforcement has failed us time and time again and all we hear are broken promises from our leaders. It’s truly shameful. Our community deserves better.”
