Graskop community fed-up with crime
The community of Graskop insisted the commander of the police station be removed following a recent bombing incident in the town.
Three different shops in Graskop were attacked on April 27, driving community members to a breaking point that saw them protesting at the town’s police station, demanding the removal of the station commander.
The three shops are situated in close proximity to the police station and were attacked by unknown criminals who bombed two of the shops’ cash safes and got away with an undisclosed amount of cash.
Brigadier Selvy Mohlala, a provincial police spokesperson, confirmed the incidents and said the estimated number of suspects is about 30 and they were heavily armed.
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According to various sources on the ground, protesters locked the Graskop SAPS’ gates, effectively putting a halt to all services and allegedly threatened to kill the commander if he was not removed from his post. The community members were later told he would be removed from the station, provided he could leave unharmed.
A protester said the attacks on the three shops lasted 45 minutes, with no police reaction for more than three hours.
“We cannot have businesses that are 100m away from the police station and they take no action to prevent these attacks. They also took more than three hours to attend to the crime scene. We want him gone and demand a new commander who will be prepared to fight crime in our town and deal with corrupt police officials,” he said.
Community members said Graskop is visited by many tourists and is supposed to be a safe area. They insisted that the police must ensure this is done.
This is a developing story.
