Petty criminals continue to wreak havoc in the Laudium area, stealing almost anything they can get their hands on, so that they can sell the stolen items, even for just a few rand.
Many residents say that the culprits behind the ongoing petty theft in the area, are mainly vagrants who are increasingly coming into the area, knowing that they would be welcomed with food and even money, given by local residents and those who left the area now living in private security estates,. However not long after making Laudium their new homes, many of these vagrants turn to drugs and crime to sustain their drug habits. More commonly known as nyaopes, some of these thieves are known to have stolen items like taps, light fittings and copper pipes from the yards of homes and selling it to dealers living in the Laudium area. About two months back a steel bin, mounted on a steel stand was stolen from the Laudium Cemetery, despite the Council having full time security at the cemetery. The bin which was used by those paying respects to their dear ones when visiting the cemetery, by throwing things like empty water bottles, dried flowers, etc, had just disappeared with neither the Council officials nor the full time security knowing when it was even stolen. Now it has emerged that another three of these steel bins have been stolen recently, with just the steel stands remaining. After receiving the latest complaint from a resident, the Laudium Sun visited the cemetery and spoke to a private worker at the Laudium Cemetery, Marvin Mkhondo who told the Laudium Sun, “I get paid by a private resident to clean the graves. When I came to work in the morning, I was surprised to see that these bins were missing. Only one is now left and that is more towards the entrance of the cemetery. I don’t know why these thieves are behaving this way by stealing in the cemetery. The cemetery should at least be respected because this one place that we all will be going one day to. The peoples loved ones are buried at this cemetery and everyone has to respect the cemetery. I wish God can punish these criminals because what they are doing is totally wrong. I don’t know why these criminals stole these rubbish bins from the cemetery, I heard they sell the metal of the bins for just a few rands. If these thieves are not stopped, soon these thieves will again steal the name steel plates or even the tombstones, like they doing at other cemeteries. These thieves have to be arrested and the police should patrol the cemetery even at night.” A security guard on duty at the Laudium Cemetery, James Shona who works for Phiri Phiri Security company told the Laudium Sun, “I suspect that the steel rubbish bins were stolen by these nyope guys who steal anything made of steel and then sell it to these scrapyards in exchange for cash. A normal person won’t steal from the cemetery, but these guys are under the influence of drugs. When these bins were stolen I was not on duty so I cannot comment about this theft. I hope one day these thieves would be arrested. The placing of these rubbish bins all over the cemetery is important as it keeps the cemetery clean. Now people are placing the dirt in one corner of a tree, but then the wind comes and the dirt flies all over even on the graves.”
Caretaker at the cemetery, Joshua Seleka confirmed to the Laudium Sun that a number of the steel mounted rubbish bins were stolen during one of the nights, but refused to comment on why the security guards on duty did not catch or even see the thieves.
