DURBAN North SAPS has warned residents of a spike in theft out of motor vehicles in uMhlanga. The warning comes after a resident lost R30 000 worth of equipment from his car on Lagoon Drive on Saturday. Capt Raymond Deokaran, spokesman for the station, said there had been a number of incidents in the area in the last month. There has been on average, more than 800 cases of theft out of motor vehicles a year.
“We are looking for two gangs who are operating in the area. From the intelligence we’ve gathered, two of the suspects have been arrested previously for similar offences. There has been a mixture of remote jamming cases as well as criminals breaking windows to gain access to the vehicle or suspects damaging the lock.
“Remote jammers, get within close proximity to your vehicle and use a signal frequency to jam your own remote from functioning. In the latest incident on Saturday, a victim lost his laptop, Sat Nav and tablet to the value of R30 000 after it was stolen from his car’s backseat.”
In the video below from 2016, the remote jammers work expertly to steal a laptop from a car parked at a La Lucia service station.
“This type of crime is preventable. Many residents visiting the beach, malls or those parking their cars on streets overnight should not leave items visible in their cars. Items such as laptops, cameras, and phones are what the suspects most often look for. I urge residents to double-check they have locked their cars and not to leave valuables in their cars,” he said.
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