WATCH: Arsonist allegedly torching lavish homes in Johannesburg north suburbs

Security company Community Active Protection (CAP) said they are aware of a suspected arsonist allegedly torching residents’ homes in the north of Johannesburg after breaking in.

According to a post on Facebook by a woman in Sandton, an arsonist is targeting homes in Hyde Park, Dunkeld and Illovo.

She said the individual has allegedly burned at least two homes down.

“Apparently, he breaks in at around 3am. Helps himself to some booze and food from the fridge and then sets the couches on fire. 13 houses over 12 months and four this year with more frequent occurrences.

“[The] last two were only three weeks apart. A family member was one of them and they were inside – upstairs sleeping with their baby and toddler.

“Apparently, the guy watches the owners through the window trying to fight the fire and ultimately giving up as he added accelerant (sic).

In the post, the woman warns residents to ensure they activate their tracker beams and alarms at their homes, even if they live in an enclosed area.

“Please consider getting smoke detectors, setting your alarms and beams and getting fire extinguishers. This guy is watching people and gets a sick sense of gratification watching these huge houses go up in flames with millions lost [sic]”.

The woman told The Citizen she is “super stressed about being targeted and because of my [Facebook] post.”

Cap said its teams are working to find and arrest the suspect, who is believed to be working on his own.

“The suspect is perpetrating crimes in the evenings or early hours of the morning. The suspect breaches physical security by scaling walls.

“With the majority of incidents occurring while residents are out – often away or the property is unoccupied. Around 75% of the incidents have occurred when no one was home.”

Andre Snyman, founder and head of eBlockwatch, said he had been alerted to suspicions of an arsonist.

Snyman shared an interview with a Hurlingham resident whose home was torched by the alleged arsonist in November 2021.

“A single individual who we have camera footage of from the cameras he didn’t cut, broke into our home. When he hit the first passive [alarm beam] in our house, the alarm started going off.

“We can track him walking from the main kitchen, dining room, lounge area straight down the passage to our main bedroom and he set it on fire.”

“He didn’t steal anything … I don’t think his intention was to steal,” the woman added.

Cap said its field Intelligence agents have investigated each scene and all relevant information was collated and shared amongst its network.

“We are working with law enforcement to identify and find the suspect involved. Teams will continue to work to find linkages and further identify the suspect.”

Cap has advised homeowners in the northern suburbs to ensure that their property is secure from the outside and also to invest in fire safety equipment smoke detectors and audible alarms.

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