Pinetown family held up at notorious intersection
A local resident and her family were held up at a notorious Pinetown intersection just moments after applying for new identity documents.
JUST a week after a Pinetown family fell victim to burglars they were held up by a knife-wielding robber in Pinetown’s notorious central business district (CBD).
Sheena Dhunlal, as well as Rakesh Mahabeer and their daughter, Zara, had been to Pinetown Home Affairs on Tuesday, 20 January, where Dhunlal and Mahabeer applied for new identity documents after their documents were stolen during a house burglary the week before.
“We drove out the premises to join the traffic on Josiah Gumede (Old Main) Road at about 2.15pm when a man stuck his hand inside the car’s window and held a knife to Rakesh’s neck. I couldn’t see the knife, so I tried to slap the man’s hand away. I then shouted that I spotted policemen nearby and the robber fled,” Dhunlal said.
Shocked, the family drove off and stopped next to the nearest police car, which happened to be a Metro Police car in Kings Road: “The officer inside the van told me that there was another woman robbed there earlier that day too.”
The family then drove to the Pinetown Police Station to open a case of attempted robbery, but said a police officer on duty told them it was a waste of time to open a case: “When Rakesh tried to open a case, a woman officer at the station told him it was a waste of time, because as soon as we opened the case, it would be closed. Only after Rakesh lost his temper did they eventually open the case, ” she said.
She said a camera at the intersection of Moodie Street and Josiah Gumede Road caught the attempted robbery on camera.
Pinetown SAPS confirmed that there were officers patrolling the CBD, but in civilian clothing. “The police officers in plain clothes are deployed every day in the CBD. We cannot disclose the number of members to the public. The cameras are being monitored by both SAPS and Metro Police and they are being used to identify criminals. Many criminals have been arrested with the help of the cameras,” said the station’s communication officer, Lt Bongumusa Manqele.
But Dhunlal questioned the effectiveness of the cameras and the undercover officers: “Mothers take their newborn babies to home affairs. It’s so bad in that area that someone is going to die one of these days. With all the road works in the area as well, you’re a sitting duck in Pinetown.”
When asked why the station has not deployed officers at problematic intersections such as Crompton Street and Josiah Gumede Road, Moodie Street and Josiah Gumede Road and Anderson and Josiah Gumede Road, Lt Manqele said it is impossible to deploy all the members at intersections.
“Other areas also need policing. Police in plain clothes are effective and have made a number of arrests at these intersections.”
When asked what the caravan outside Home Affairs was used for, Lt Manqele said it is mainly used for certification of documents and added it is currently closed for renovations.
