MP Liezl van der Merwe has warned that syndicate crime in Cape Town is growing worse, with gangs now increasingly targeting motorists near Cape Town International Airport.
During a parliamentary question and answer session, Van der Merwe questioned why there was no visible policing in the area, specifically at traffic lights and intersections where criminals are targeting tourists and locals for their cellphones.
“With regard to the safety of tourists, what are the reasons there is no visible policing in and around Cape Town International Airport, where criminal syndicates target locals and tourists for their cellphones at traffic lights and intersections while sitting in their vehicles?” she asked.
In response to the question, the police ministry noted that the border policing team has a clear mandate to police the airport precinct and that most of the crimes take place outside this jurisdiction.
The ministry also noted that one of the causes for this perceived increase in crime is that many of the crimes took place near Nyanga but were only reported once the victims arrived at the airport.
Consequently, these cases were then transferred to the Nyanga police.
It was also stated that any seeming lack of police presence in the area was not due to a lack of police but rather that the police operate on a strict security plan rather than have them at static locations.
However, to address the rising concerns, the ministry noted that the Nyanga police and the City of Cape Town have been tasked with establishing static deployments in criminal hotspots.
Rising crime
Crime in the area has steadily been on the rise, with 42 cases reported at Cape Town International between 1 April and 31 March this year, according to TimesLive.
Additionally, City of Cape Town FF Plus councillor Emre Uygun recently called for better law enforcement strategies following an incident where a woman was seriously injured after a concrete block was thrown at her car while driving along the N2.
Prior to this, an American tourist was robbed and shot while travelling from the airport to Simon’s Town and an elderly German couple was robbed along the Baden Powell Drive near Wolfgat.
These crimes are just the tip of the iceberg and run the risk of diminishing Cape Town’s appeal as a tourist attraction while making life more difficult for locals.
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