Somerset West’s crime is on the decline, which offers a glimmer of hope to the community about their ongoing security concerns. This was presented to stakeholders gathered in the Somerset West Library Hall at a meeting hosted by the Community Policing Forum (CPF) on Wednesday 9 October.
Vispol commander for Somerset West, Lieutenant Colonel JP du Toit, spoke on behalf of the police and unveiled Somerset West’s recent crime report for the previous semester, which spans April to September, this year.
He stated that contact crimes were down by 11% and non-contact crimes by 16,15%.
Property crimes were down by 4,7% and the biggest decrease seen by the police were of robbery, which had fallen by 58%, successes attributed to the impact of neighbourhood watches as well as the various security companies operating in the area.
Other crimes, such as fraud where criminals targeted pensioners, had risen by 0,5%.
Du Toit also mentioned an increase in motor-vehicle thefts (“Motor-vehicle thefts spike”, DistrictMail & Helderberg Gazette, 18 September) and the murder of a Lesotho foreign national (“Killed in broad daylight”, 9 October) as notable incidents.
The meeting not only focused on the past crime prevention methods, but included showcasing the police strategy to curb crime in the future, such as the Community in Blue members who were recently trained by the station commander of Sir Lowry’s Pass, Captain Charles Riffel, in anticipation of the festive season that is fast approaching (“Patrollers train”, DistrictMail & Helderberg, 9 October).
Llewellyn Pistorius, one of the CPF’s Victim Support members, wrapped things up by thanking the police for their service and reminded the other stakeholders of their responsibilities, particularly of being the police’s information gatherers, their eyes and ears.
The meeting concluded with vice chairperson of the Somerset West CPF Tony van Minnen explaining to the community members that the best way to keep their residential areas and surrounding communities safe was to join their local neighbourhood watch.
