A Bedfordview couple has decided to share their experience after being robbed.
Their aim is to spread awareness of how criminals target Bedfordview residents.
Mrs Paola Peixoto was the victim of an armed robbery in her home on Douglas Road, Bedfordview, on November 12.
She was targeted by three unknown men at a shopping complex, followed by the men to her residence and robbed at gunpoint outside her garage.
Camera footage at the Park Meadows Pick n Pay shopping complex shows the men waiting at a café for Mrs Peixoto to finish her shopping.
When she completed her shopping, she walked out of the shopping centre. The suspects left the coffee shop and proceeded to follow her to where she was parked.
“I saw in the footage that one of the men stood three cars away from my car and the other two went to fetch their car. The men approached where I was parked with their car and waited behind me, like they were waiting to take my parking space. When I drove out and away, the men in a white Audi A3 started following me,” said Mrs Peixoto.
“They looked like security guards. Both were wearing white short sleeve shirts and black pants. I didn’t know I was being followed and when I arrived in my gated suburb, I drove to my gate and entered my premises. Not a minute after my gate had closed, the men reopened the gate with an electronic device of some sort,” said Mrs Peixoto.
“Two men with firearms exited the car and walked onto my premises with their firearms pointed at me. One of the men proceeded to assault my gardener. As they approached my car, I slipped my watch under my seat. When the man neared my car, he forcefully opened my car door and demanded my watch. When I told him I was not wearing a watch, he cocked his gun and told me he saw the watch at the shopping complex and he wanted it or else he was going to kill me. I told him it was under my seat and the man yanked my whole seat backwards, with me in it, reached underneath it and took the watch and my jewellery,” said Mrs Peixoto.
In the month of October alone, four robberies took place at residential premises in Bedfordview, with three incidents of robberies taking place in one week.
This resulted in a Residential Action Group security meeting as a call to action for residents to take charge of their personal security. The group also spread awareness of various crime trends and statistics in the area and personal emergency plans in case of crisis.
With the festive season approaching, there is a high possibility of crimes increasing.
“I want people to understand that having the sector police’s phone number on your phone can help speed up the efficiency of the police getting to a crime scene. If I had my Bedfordview sector police number they would have been here quicker and they would have been able to circulate the registration number of the suspects’ car in the first 5 minutes. We would have had a higher chance of catching the suspects. I want to help people become aware of how crime is being conducted because I don’t think people take it seriously. People don’t believe it could happen to them,” said Mrs Peixoto.
“I was shaking like a leaf when the gun was pointed at me. I had to leave my house and walk all the way to the ADT security booth after the incident, while my alarm rang for the whole neighbourhood to hear. I phoned the police and they arrived between five and 10 minutes later, which was a good response time in my opinion. I was quite impressed by the Bedfordview SAPS,” said Mrs Peixoto.
Mr Vergil Peixoto expressed his anger about the crime in the area. “I am upset by this because things could have gone horribly wrong. I was not in the country and my children were at school, meaning my wife was vulnerable. If something had happened to my wife, I would have been totally out of it. You could lose someone so quickly in this country over something as simple as a watch,” he said.
“We have decided to move. We have packed most of our belongings and one of the main reasons we are moving is because of the crime in Bedfordview and this country. Obviously, because these people are stealing jewelry it means there is a market for it. If there was no market for it, we as residents of Bedfordview would not be targets for it. There is no regard for human life; it was a very quick decision to leave as I will not lose a family member because of a watch or ring,” Mr Peixoto added.
“The three men knew what they wanted because they targeted me at the shopping complex. They targeted my watch and specifically asked for it during the robbery. If I have to live in a country where I can’t even wear a watch I like in fear that someone is going to put a gun to my head for it, then what is the point of living in this country? What the point of having all these nice things but you have to keep them in a safe?” asked Mrs Peixoto.
“The crime is real in this country. Bedfordview residents should take care of their belongings, be vigilant of who is watching them and who is following them,” said Mr Peixoto.
The Bedfordview SAPS can be contacted on the following numbers: sector one, 071 657 6885/6886, sector two on 071 675 6886/6888 or sector three on 071 675 6889/6890.
