Durban - Concern has been raised over criminals using official uniforms or letters to gain their victims’ trust ‒ and alerting residents on how to combat this growing threat.
This follows the robbery at a Durban school this week by armed suspects who were allegedly wearing police vests and masks.
On Wednesday, four armed men arrived at Clayton Road Primary School in Asherville, Overport, where they robbed staff of laptops, cellphones and cash.
An alert was issued on CPF groups across Durban regarding the details of the incident, also reporting the suspects had fled in a vehicle.
Yesterday, the school principal did not wish to comment on the incident but did confirm four suspects were involved.
SAPS spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Nqobile Gwala did not comment on the allegations that the suspects were wearing police branded vests and masks but confirmed that a case of robbery had been opened at Sydenham Police Station for investigation.
“It is alleged the complainant were with colleagues when they were accosted by four armed males.
“At gunpoint, they robbed them of three laptops, four cellphones and an undisclosed amount of cash. The suspect fled in their getaway vehicle,” said Gwala.
She added that every police official must carry an appointment card at all times, including plain clothes detectives.
“The members of the public have the right to request the police officer to produce the appointment card, and if he or she refuses to identify him or herself, they can call the nearest police station or 10111,” said Gwala.
Yesterday, a local teacher (not at Clayton Primary School), Nasrin Kadwa, said she had been discussing the theme “people who help us” with her pupils just before the robbery.
“What do you now tell a child? That (people dressed as) police are robbing people?
“How do you ‘unconfuse’ children?”
She feared the incidents would have life-long effects on children and suggested some sort of therapy may be needed.
“We have to come to understand that we are living in such times. Children have to be ready for anything,” said Kadwa, adding that she had similar concerns for her own children.
Pro-Act Neighbourhood Watch’s Andreas Mathios from Pinetown said community policing forums, security companies and concerned residents could harness the power of shared WhatsApp groups to increase security around schools.
He said their neighbourhood watch had implemented such WhatsApp groups with two schools in the area.
“We’ve set up a dedicated WhatsApp group with school management, SAPS and CPF members.
“We advise the school to educate pupils to always be alert and aware of their surroundings because the criminals will often get out of a vehicle and will approach you in a specific way when they are planning a robbery. And when you see a lot of people dressed up in uniforms which doesn’t gel right, it needs to be reported.
“With regard to social media, there are lots of children outside a school waiting for their parents to pick them up. They are allowed to use their cellphones, so they can pop that type of information onto a WhatsApp group that the school has control over.
“The school needs to set up communication structures so they can get tip-offs from pupils, even anonymously,” said Mathios, adding that, for example, a school could set up a group for matrics who may spot suspicious activity or behaviour.
“This is working very well at the schools where we have set this up.
“Access control is also critically important. If you do not have identification that certifies you as a teacher or even as a policeman, residents have the right not to let anyone into their property. It doesn’t matter whether it’s a residential premises, business premises or a school premises.
“In today’s modern society, access control and identification are vital,” he said.
He warned people to have a proper look when someone flashed a card with a photograph on it.
Marshall Security’s Tyron Powell said the issue was to be able to confirm if the person wanting to enter a property “was an actual police officer or a suspect pretending to be such”. He advised residents to request an officer’s certificate and, if this was not produced, to call 10111 to verify the officer’s force number.
Lizette Lancaster, manager of the Crime and Justice Information Hub of the Justice and Violence Prevention Programme at the Institute for Security Studies in Pretoria, said: “This very traumatic incident (Clayton Road Primary) represents our ultimate fear where our children may be at risk of harm by what is perceived to be the very people that should protect us.”
She said the incident must be investigated as a matter of priority “because of the gravity of the robbery by a gang likely to perpetrate more such robberies and because of the use of official police equipment”.
“The line of interrogation should include detecting the perpetrators, for example, whether actual police members were involved or likely to have supplied the police equipment.
“The investigators should work closely with the National Prosecuting Authority to ensure a strong case is constructed leading to prosecutions.”
She added that the recent Human Sciences Research Council’s annual South African Social Attitudes Survey (SASAS) series results for 2021 showed that only 27% of South Africans trust the South African Police Service.
“The same percentage display trust in the SAPS in KwaZulu-Natal.”
Lancaster said that factors negatively impacting public confidence include high levels of crime, perceptions of police ineffectiveness and corruption.
Also this week, CCTV footage was aired on television showing two men wearing police uniforms with hats and masks allegedly robbing a shopkeeper in central Durban.
The shopkeeper has claimed the two police officers stole R37 000. In the CCTV footage, one suspect is seen putting his hand in a cash box under the counter, pulling out what appears to be cash and putting it into his pocket, while off-camera, the second suspect is allegedly distracting the shopkeeper.
National police spokesperson Colonel Athlenda Mathe confirmed that police were investigating the video footage. She said SAPS would not condone any acts of criminality within its ranks.
Last month, IOL reported that a family in Phoenix, north of Durban, was held up by six armed men who approached the homeowner and claimed to be from the municipality and were following up on a query.
It was reported that the suspects were driving a white Isuzu bakkie with a municipal registration plate and were dressed in municipal clothing, and produced an official-looking letter to gain access. They stole an undisclosed amount of valuables and robbed the staff who were working in the garden.
The family reported that the letter, which had a letterhead, municipality logo and reference number 7/71/4/SJ/Cb-52451 and a reference name for enquiries, was purported to be from the electricity unit.
The letter, titled Authorisation for Electrical Investigation, had the family’s address and was dated March 24.
KZN VIP protection services spokesperson Gareth Naidoo warned that there was a chance the robbers might be committing the same crime in other areas too.
However, police spokesperson Colonel Thembeka Mbele said the complainant did not open a case.
IOL reported later that four men with fake eThekwini Municipality electricity department letters had been arrested.
eThekwini Municipality issued a public warning about a fake letter bearing the eThekwini Municipality logo that was doing the rounds on social media.
“We appeal to the public to demand identification cards that bear the picture of an individual and a service number as opposed to letters of this nature.
“The city has learnt with shock that this letter was used by unscrupulous individuals to rob one family in Phoenix. We, therefore, urge law enforcement agencies to leave no stone unturned in unmasking these criminals,” read the statement. - Additional reporting: IOL Thobeka Ngema
The Independent on Saturday
Related Topics: