Two alleged thieves broke through a wall to gain entry into a shop in Buhle Park at about 1.30am, last Friday morning.
“The victim alleged that he was asleep inside the shop when he was awakened by the noise of the bricks falling,” said Const Daphney Phooko, communications officer for the Elsburg SAPS.
The pair entered the shop and demanded money from the victim.
They made off on foot with R2 500 in cash, a box of Typex paper and airtime vouchers worth R1 500.
The men are still at large.
Phooko told the GCN that suspects have been using the same modus operandi for the past three weeks to commit business robberies and business burglaries in the Buhle Park and Rondebult areas.
“These two areas are the most problematic regarding such crimes,” Phooko said.
“Members of the community are warned to be aware of two or more males, threatening their victims with either a firearm or a knife and threatening to kill them.”
She added that there is a concern as the Elsburg SAPS investigating officers are struggling to get full details at the crime scenes, as the foreign nationals (who are being attacked) give the police problems when they are provided with J88 forms to go to the doctor to get a medical report.
“Many don’t bother to go to the doctor, or to return the form to the police,” Phooko said.
“They also do not close their shops when they are attacked and they do not report the incidents to the police timeously.
“They are also unable to identify the suspects.”
The Elsburg police have arranged a number of meetings with foreign nationals to discuss the issue of crime and their businesses, but Phooko said they do not attend the meetings.
“We then decided to conduct a door-to-door campaign to inform foreign nationals to put security measures in place, for example, set up cameras and install alarms and to fence their yards.
“They were also warned to stay vigilant at all times.
“Due to the poor communication between the investigating officers and the foreign nationals (victims), the cases are often withdrawn from court and the foreign nationals have a hard time understanding the language (English) used in court as there are no interpreters for them,” Phooko said.
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