Police send out warning as vigilantism and assault cases increase in Merewent
It is a punishable offense to take the law into your own hands and retaliate with revenge or acts of violence.
POLICE warn that residents who assault or kill a person suspected of committing a crime will be prosecuted and are urging residents in the Merewent policing area to refrain from acts of punishing perceived offenders of crime.
This comes after an increase in reports of common assault and assault with grievous bodily harm cases at Wentworth police station.
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The spokesperson of the Wentworth Police Station, Captain Mbuso Gumede, said there has been a notable increase in cases of assault in recent months, and many of the cases have been either domestic-related, friends fighting for valuables or cases of vigilantism.
“Assaulting a person physically, threatening them and verbal abuse are all forms of violence. Cases of this nature that amount to vigilantism are happening in the community. It is a crime to assault, injure or impose threat to a person. Vigilantism amounts to taking the law into your own hands and is a punishable offence.
“We urge the community to report the crimes and not to retaliate with revenge or acts of violence. Residents should rather report incidents and apply for a protection order or court interdict in order to prevent violence,” Gumede added.
To report crime, call Crimestop on 08600 10111 or the Wentworth Police Station on 031 451 6240/6241/6242.
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