It seems criminals know that the chances of being caught by the local police are indeed very slim, and thus continue to drive around freely, in the Laudium area, looking for opportunities to pounce upon vulnerable residents.
Despite calls by residents for the local police to beef up patrols and set up regular roadblocks in the area, police management do not seem to be interested in the pleas of the community, but rather more interested in receiving their monthly salary, without being evaluated on performance. This follows a recent hijacking incident that took place on a busy street in Laudium, leaving the victims traumatized.
Last Saturday morning at around 7am, three locals from Emerald Street were accosted by a gang of four robbers who relieved them of their hard earnings, belongings and their Mercedes Benz vehicle.
Speaking to the Laudium Sun, Imran Molvin said, “It was Saturday morning when my two brothers and I just drove out of our house on Emerald Str, en route to our hardware shop in Soshanguve. Just as we were leaving, four guys, two Indians and two blacks, armed with guns, approached us at all four doors of our car. They pointed guns at us and demanded that we get out of the car. We didn’t ask any questions nor answer back, as we were all terrified that they would not hesitate to shoot us. I told my brothers to please be calm and jump out of the car. As we opened the car doors to get out, they immediately started searching us. They stole all our cell phones which were iPhones and took whatever monies we had in our pockets. My brother, Sayed Jawad Shah, had a lot of cash on him, which was to be used to pay for stock that day, which the brazen thugs also stole. They then told us to walk back into our yard and to not look back or else they would shoot us. As we walked away, they got into our car and drove off. Although we reported the crime to the Laudium police, I knew that we could not depend on them to act quickly, so I called one of my friends, Samiullah Ulla who has contacts all over. He immediately tracked my car, which eventually stopped in Nelspruit. With the help of his police contacts, one of the thugs was arrested in Nelspruit and brought back here to Laudium. The Laudium police are now handling the case. I was told that the suspect will appear next Monday (Jan 24) at the Atteridgeville Magistrates Court. I’m so grateful that none of us were hurt and I’m also thankful that I got my car back, although I am sad that they stole our money and phones. Thanks to the help of my friend, one of the thugs is now arrested and hopefully the other three will soon be arrested. These criminals are so daring. They attacked us in the morning, in broad daylight, when Emerald Street was so busy with passing traffic and even pedestrians. It seems that they were not even worried that the police may pass by.”
