I write this letter to warn other people.
On April 3, I got a lift to Steeledale Pick n Pay. My intention was to collect a parcel at the post office and go to Cash Crusaders. I had a brand new printer that I wanted to sell. I also had with me a cooler bag with food as I did not know how long everything would take. As it neared the time for the shops to open I started to cross the road.
I had the printer in a large zip-up carrier bag. A female motorist stopped and said it looks heavy – and it was. She said that I should put the bag in her boot. The car was a bluish grey hatchback. I think it was a Toyota but I’m not sure. I put the printer in the boot and got into the car. We went to the parking lot.
The lady then asked me what was in the bag and I told her and she said that she would buy it from me for R1 000 to which I agreed.
She then started driving. One minute we were in Rosettenville, then The Hill and then back in Rosettenville. I know now that this was an attempt to confuse me. After about an hour I told her that we needed to get the money. She said okay. We stopped, I got out to get the printer from the boot and she drove off taking all my belongings with her.
Inside my bag I had a cellphone, glasses, ID book, a cover and keyboard for my tablet (which I had handed in at a shop in Rosettenville and was going to collect after I had finished at Steeledale), cash, a screwdriver, a bag containing medicine, my slip from the post office, a notebook with all my contact numbers, all my bank cards, shopping and SASSA cards.
I was in a state of shock. I waved down a car in an attempt to follow her but it was too late and the gentleman dropped me off near Steeledale. I went into a pub and asked to use their phone.
We phoned the crime hotline and I asked if they could put a tracer on my phone. They said that my service provider needed to do this. I phoned MTN in Alberton City and they told me I needed a case number. I walked to the Moffat View Police Station. The lady there said I couldn’t open a case as I did not have her (the thief’s) registration number. I then walked to Alberton. I went to my bank to stop my card and got a new one and I stopped my other bank card. I went to MTN and asked them to block my phone.
I then walked to Alberton Police Station and they told me that I could not open a case as I did not know the address of where the lady dropped me, and that I needed to go to Booysens Police Station. By this time I was really tired and I had had enough.
I went to a friend in Alberton North. I phoned my daughter and asked her to transfer money to my bank account. I then asked the pharmacy if I could replace my chronic medication but they said I need a new script. I then drew the money from my bank account and went home, arriving at almost 8pm.
Brenda Brugger (62), The Hill
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