This week’s rampage by cable thieves, during loadshedding time, saw about 17 electric light poles targeted early Wednesday morning (Oct 5), on Bengal Str and at the Laudium Cemetery, believed to have been carried out by a well organised ‘mastermind’ in the area.
Questions are now once more being raised as to how the thieves got away unnoticed by both police and the many private security patrollers in the area. Calls are now also being made by the community, for police management to record the names of the police officials on patrol duty, each time a crime is committed against residents by unknown persons. Residents say that both police and the private patrollers should account as to where they were at the time a crime is committed by unknown persons, as there is a strong possibility that either police or the security patrollers or even both are working in cahoots with criminals in the area.
This follows residents in the Bengal/Agra Street area, realising on Wednesday morning that they still had no lights after the loadshedding time. Reports then flowed that many residents had noticed that the electricity poles on Bengal Street had been stripped of the cables. Not long thereafter, reports also surfaced that many of the light poles at the Laudium Cemetery were vandalised and the electric cables stolen, (see Laudium Sun FB Page).
A resident from Bengal Str, Hasan Teladia told the Laudium Sun, ”I find it very strange that thieves managed to strip the electric cables from the main street in the area, without police or security patrollers noticing them.”
The resident also said that many people were paying monthly fees to private security companies to patrol their areas, yet the thieves got away undetected by the security.
Shakeel Bhaktawar from the Ward Councillor’s office said, “A number of houses in the area have different security boards, but ironically not one security patroller witnessed anything. This is now a matter of concern, as it seems the thieves are well aware of our vulnerable position, during loadshedding. We will now have to get our CPF involved to call an urgent meeting with the private security and police. We want to also know if all security guards have police clearance and the necessary training before being allowed to work in the area. It is the function of the CPF to check with the police. It seems nowadays any person can become a security guard.”
Elsie Poonan from Bengal Street, told the Laudium Sun, “As it is we are already suffering with all this load shedding, now to top it off cable theft. It is really annoying, because we have police, but what are they doing? We also have these security companies around Laudium. What are they doing? Then on top of it our Council is useless, as they take their time in order to get our electricity back on again. This is affecting us every day. We are now unable to buy all our groceries for the month, because we are so afraid that our food stuff will go off. So now it costs us more for petrol and buying little little at a time.”
Mumtaz Dada, also from Bengal Street, told the Laudium Sun, “We are fed up with crime and grime in and around Laudium. This is both the Council’s and the Police’s fault, because we are not safe in our own area. Not even the cables are safe, that’s how bad it is.”
Luqman Ali of Bengal Street told the Laudium Sun, “The cables were stolen some time during the early part of the morning, but it is already past lunch time and our electricity is still off. We have even complained so many times previously, regarding the street lights that have been off for a long time, but we have not got any feedback.”
Shaheen Wahab, chairperson of the Laudium CPF, told the Laudium Sun, “We are very worried as to how these thieves managed to cut and steal electric cables from so many light poles, without being detected. The issue of criminals working with the police or security guards will have to be looked at. I agree that all security guards working in the area should be vetted by police, as we cannot be having criminals working in the area, disguised as security guards.”
