BEREA’S community policing volunteers went out on a limb to remove criminal elements from their streets on Sunday afternoon, but were disappointed when police let the suspect off the hook.
According to SCF Sector One chairman, Des Moodley, drugs in the Musgrave area has been an ongoing problem, especially around Berea Park where residents and Sector One members have observed people hiding drugs in the trees. “On Sunday at about 3.15pm, members from Sector One radioed me saying there was a suspicious man on St Thomas Road wearing a heavy jacket in the heat. I went out there with members to check what he was doing as there are many vagrants who become aggressive towards female drivers around the intersection and asked him what he was doing there. The man eventually moved on and as I left, I noticed more suspicious activity,” said Moodley.
Moodley saw a suspicious youngster get up from near rubbish bins and walk towards a vehicle on Musgrave Road. “I noticed something orange in his hand which he dropped into the White Tuscon. I called for backup from police and waited for him to return and asked him to empty his pockets and found foil and residue of drugs on him. The youngster said he came from Addington Hospital. When I asked him what he was doing with the foil, he said he had Tuberculosis. When he opened up the bins where I had initially spotted him, I found the syringes. Another tall guy, who was standing close by ran away and the youngster also ran and I managed to grab him,” Moodley said.
A Berea police van arrived a short while later and the two young constables who attended told Moodley and other members who were there that youngster was on medication and let him go after speaking to him. “They said he was on medication and he could not be arrested, but the cut Coke can and foil clearly shows they are cooking drugs. TB medication is administered in tablet form and not with syringes, also sodium chloride is a known breakdown agent for many drugs. They are not qualified enough to make a decision like that and the same man was seen back there yesterday (Monday) with the same drugs and needles,” Moodley said.
Meanwhile, Moodley encouraged the community to get involved in Sector One’s continued efforts to raise crime awareness.
“Our members responded to a complaint at the corner of St Thomas and Musgrave Roads, near the park. The complaint was allegations of drugs against the vagrants. On their arrival, the vagrants were pointed out to members, they searched the vagrants and tuberculosis medication was found. The vagrants were thoroughly searched an the area was thoroughly searched and no drugs were found, therefore nobody was arrested,” Captain TD Gumede communications officer at Berea SAPS said.
