The language of criminals is exposed
ALEXANDRA - Can you make head or tail of this when you see it painted on your wall? If you see one of these signs on your wall or attached to your fence, then you must know criminals have been surveying your house and could be ready to strike.
Can you make head or tail of this when you see it painted on your wall? If you see one of these signs on your wall or attached to your fence, then you must know criminals have been surveying your house and could be ready to strike.
Someone, somewhere, somehow knows something about crime and could either be be part of it or its solution. This is a preamble to a public notice for Domestic Watch meetings conducted by making A Difference (Mad), an organisation which holds crime workshops for domestics and homeowners. The workshops are also supported by the police and security companies.
Mad is targeting the community of Alexandra and will be holding regular workshops there to try and make the community aware of the criminal mind out there. Alex News covers crime issues extensively, and in one of our articles, Locals furious about crime weekending 6 June, residents of Eastbank, an affluent section of Alex, exposed soaring crime in the area.
Sadly, state and private security agencies seem incapable of stamping out crime and often have to appeal to residents for co-operation through proactive measures such as reporting suspicious elements in their areas.
Mad exposes some of the methods and signs used by criminals in planning their activities, and encourage communities to destroy or report them to the police. They include chalk or paint markings on roads, rocks, sticks, paper, cans, and bottles in front of homes. Often residents ignore these as they cannot decipher the message yet they could be strategic objects identifying homes to target.
Criminals also phone homes to check if someone is present, or lure residents outside by switching off electricity mains increasing a homeowners’ vulnerability when going out in the dark to check, often leaving a door open.
Mad advises residents to take pictures of and remove these signs or objects, and report any strange or suspicious things and occurrences not associated with the area to the police for investigation.
Facilitator of Mad Penny Steyn said they were keen to conduct their security-related workshops in any community.
Details: Domestic Watch meetings 082 461 6968 or madpenny@absamail.co.za
Did you know about these signs? Have you spotted any of these signs in Alexandra?
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