Anti-crime efforts in Douglasdale
DOUGLASDALE - Following a meeting with community members on 7 August, Douglasdale police and security company groups fulfilled their commitment to step up safety and security in the area.
Throughout the week of 11 August, anti-crime operations teams conducted comprehensive sweeps of river and bush areas, as well as crime hotspots identified by the community.
The teams checked for criminal elements, and made about 20 arrests for offences including illegal immigrant status and vagrancy.
“Addressing law enforcement issues without waiting for big tag crimes to take place is a highly effective means of community protection and crime deterrence,” commented advocate Jean Berdou, chair of the Douglasdale Community Policing Forum.
Berdou urged community members to do their part to reduce criminal activity in the area, by conforming to South Africa’s laws regarding the employment of illegal immigrants.
“Hiring persons who are illegally in South Africa is a very serious criminal offence with substantial criminal sanctions including prison time. It is the intention of the authorities to start prosecuting such persons,” Berdou warned.
He added that residents ran a security risk by taking strangers into their homes and businesses to do temporary jobs. What is more, those who make use of temporary labourers exacerbate the problem by attracting illegal immigrants and vagrants to the area.
“It’s time the community played its role in crime prevention by not attracting such elements by making use of such services,” Berdou declared.
