by Ilanit Chernick | Mar 13, 2015 | News
Witsies have spoken of their “disbelief” as they witnessed criminals mugging motorists and attacking fellow students in and around Braamfontein.
A group of four men have been targeting cars waiting in traffic next to Noswall Hall residence on Jan Smuts avenue this past week.
A male student, who asked to remain anonymous, said he saw the men running into traffic on Tuesday afternoon and initially could not understand what they were doing. Soon after, he saw them approach a car with its windows down.
“They reached in and stole his valuables. I got scared and realised they were mugging people in their cars who were stuck in traffic. I thought I’d be next so I just ran away,” he said.
Student Funeka Sibande said she had a similar experience last week when she was standing with a friend outside Noswall Hall.
“They came out of nowhere and were running between cars mugging people inside the cars. Two went to the passenger doors and two to the driver’s door taking anything they could see. I was in disbelief,” she said.
When they came back one of the muggers said: “We are not here for you guys.”
According to Sibande the mugger said: “We are targeting privileged people and whites in good cars.”
Minutes later they mugged “a white man in a Jeep who had his windows down”, Sibande said.
“They came out of nowhere and were running between cars mugging people inside the cars. Two went to the passenger doors and two to the driver’s door taking anything they could see. I was in disbelief.”
“We got away after that, they were dangerous. People need to be careful. Don’t leave your windows down and please don’t leave valuables where they can be seen,” she said.
This is just one of several muggings and “smash and grabs” that have been taking place in various areas around Braamfontein over the last two weeks.
Wits security and liaison manager, Lucky Khumela, said he was not aware of the gang outside Noswall Hall but would warn Wits security to be on the lookout and “increase security” in the area. He said he would also alert police in the area.
“Don’t leave your valuables. Lock your laptops and bags in your boot and keep cellphones out of sight. There is a rise in sporadic crimes in the area and we will do everything we can to keep our students safe,” he said.
Last week a red Volkswagen Polo was targeting students on Smit, Jorissen and Simmonds streets.
The vehicle is believed to have been involved in at least five muggings around the Braamfontein and Wits area.
On Saturday a female student was mugged of her cellphone by one of the assailants who distracted her and then climbed into the waiting red Polo driven by an accomplice and the two of them drove off.
The student ran to a guard who alerted other members of security in the area. According to Khumela, one of the security guards then saw the Polo waiting at a red traffic light on Simmonds street.
“He grabbed a metal pole and hit the back window and the side of the car as a way of trying to stop them from getting away,” said Khumela.
The car managed to get away but has not been seen in the area since.
by Ilanit Chernick | Mar 9, 2015 | News
A Wits security guard attempted to stop a car involved in a robbery while it was fleeing the scene of a robbery in Braamfontein on Saturday.
The vehicle, a red Volkswagen Polo, is believed to have been involved in at least five muggings around the Braamfontein and Wits area over the last week.
Saturday robbery
A female student, who asked to remain anonymous, was walking on Jorissen street when a man walked up behind her.
“He distracted me and then stole my cellphone right from my hands. It happened so quickly,” she said.
The robber then climbed into a waiting red Polo driven by an accomplice and the two of them drove off.
The student ran to a guard who alerted other members of security in the area. According to Campus Security and Liaisons manager Lucky Khumela, one of the security guards then saw the Polo waiting at a red traffic light on Simmonds street.
“He grabbed a metal pole and hit the back window and the side of the car as a way of trying to stop them from getting away,” said Khumela.
The car managed to get away but has not been seen in the area since.
Previous incidents
On Friday, the same car was involved in two muggings where two cell phones and a wallet were stolen. Khumela said most of the victims in the past week had been females.
Khumela has asked students to “keep an eye out” for the vehicle and to call the police or campus control if it is seen.
The number plate of the red Polo is WSW533 GP.
Crime around campus can be reported to Campus Control on (011) 717-444
by Ilanit Chernick | Feb 19, 2015 | News
A total of 4 cars and 46 cellphones have been stolen from Wits University staff and students since the beginning of February.
Two cars have been stolen from Wits in the last two days alone and Campus Control say they believe “a crime syndicate” is operating on campus.
Wits Security and Liaisons manager Lucky Khumela told Wits Vuvuzela that the vehicles were stolen from West Campus parking lots around lunchtime on Tuesday afternoon.
In one incident, a car was stopped by Campus Control at the Yale Road exit on suspicion it was stolen. “The culprits drove through the closed boom and broke it to avoid security”, Khumela said.
He added that four cars, all Toyotas, have been stolen from Wits in the last three weeks from the university grounds.
“The culprits drove through the closed boom and broke it to avoid security,”
Cell phone theft
The number of stolen cellphones in the last two weeks rose to 46 as another 3 were stolen yesterday.
According to Khumela, 16 cellphones were stolen during the Freshers’ Party last Friday night along with 20 during Orientation Week. Khumela believes these incidents are the work of “petty thieves,” working together with a group of criminals.
“There have been incidences where students have been dancing at a party, the perpetrator pretends to dance with the victim and then hugs him or her and the phone is then stolen”.
Campus Control say they are working in conjunction with the South African Police Services (SAPS), to find the perpetrators and “bring justice to the campus”. Three people have so far been arrested in connection with the stolen phones.
Khumela has instructed Campus Control to do spot-check’s at the campus exit points on “vulnerable vehicles” to ensure they are not stolen.
“I ask staff and students to please cooperate with Campus Control when you asked to switch on and off your car. If a car has been stolen it cannot be switched off”.
Suspicious or criminal activity can be reported to Campus Control on (011) 717-4444 or lucky.khumela@wits.ac.za
by Ilanit Chernick | Aug 27, 2014 | News
A gang of men have been involved in a number of “snatch and goes” in Braamfontein’s Bertha and De Korte streets over the past two weeks.
Wits Security and Liaisons manager, Lucky Khumela said he is aware of a “gang of men” in the area who are attempting “snatch and goes” on vulnerable targets.
“We have seen a rise of this type of crime where the opportunists will either distract the person and pick-pocket them or just snatch their visible valuables.”
The most recent attack was on Sunday morning when a male non-student was robbed by two men.
“They stole his wallet and cell phone. Our security was informed and subsequently SAPS was called,” Khumela said.
This followed other attacks, the first of which was on August 15 when a a female Witsie was approached from behind by a man t while outside the KFC on De Korte street .
“It was broad daylight. The man snatched my phone from my hands and jumped into a car that had a group of men in it who just drove away,” the woman told Wits Vuvuzela.
Last Saturday, a Wits student’s phone was snatched from her by “a guy who then got into his car that was parked nearby and drove off”.
On Monday, Wits Vuvuzela was approached about attempted car thefts on Bertha street by a security guard who asked to remain anonymous.
The security guard said there was a gang who keep trying to break into cars and steal them while parked in the area next to the Wits Art Museum.
“I tell people who park there to tell the guard to watch their cars and to give him pansela. There have been so many attempted break in’s. These men keep trying to steal the cars and nothing is being done to stop them.”
Khumela said this was the first he had heard of this problem but insisted Campus Control would get to the “bottom of it”.
by Ilanit Chernick | Aug 20, 2014 | News
STATS: A list of the increase and decrease of stats around the Wits area. Graphic: Campus Control
Crime – including mugging – is on the rise in and around Wits campus, according to the annual crime report released by Campus Control yesterday.
Despite the higher number of arrests made by the South African Police Services (SAPS) together with Campus Control, crime has increased from 279 incidents in 2013 to 310 in 2014. However, this number is still lower than 2012, when 348 incidents occurred. The stats include the area in and around the Wits campus area.
Although theft in general, and the theft of cars, has decreased, thefts outside of cars, pick-pocketing, muggings and the possession of drugs have increased around campus. Cell phone and laptop thefts have also risen.
Campus Control said the rise in cell phone and laptop thefts was as a result of “negligence” by students. Hot-spots across campus were found to be classrooms, parking areas and some residences. Most of the crimes in these areas were petty.
Campus Control’s security and liaison manager Lucky Khumela told Wits Vuvuzela: “Students have been leaving their valuables unattended in these areas and this gives opportunists a chance to take action and steal those valuables.”
Khumela said students must be vigilant, but that Campus Control was working together with the SAPS to arrest “perpetrators of crime”.
“We have been successful so far and we hope to continue. As you can see from the statistics, our arrests have risen from 36 to 42 in the last six months.”
Students have also been warned to be careful in a number of areas outside campus including Enoch Sontonga, De Korte, Jorissen, Ameshof and Melle Streets, as well as Jan Smuts Avenue and Empire Road, where muggings and smash-and-grabs have become more common, as reported by Wits Vuvuzela earlier this year.
Students leaving campus at night, whether walking to their vehicles or walking to residences around Wits or in Braamfontein, are encouraged to call Campus Control to escort them.
Crime can be reported to Campus Control on (011) 717-4444
RELATED ARTICLES:
Wits Vuvuzela: INFOGRAPHIC: Crime spike affects Wits University,May 12, 2014
Wits Vuvuzela: Smash and grabs rife on Empire Road, May 10, 2014
by Mfuneko Toyana | Feb 21, 2014 | News
Pap Con: Fake bags of cocaine used by the conman to get students to hand over their cellphones. Photo: Provided
Dealers snared
A MAN claiming to be a Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) student was arrested on main campus Tuesday, carrying enough dagga to fill a medium-sized pillow-case.
The man was arrested in an undercover sting operation by Campus Control officers in plain clothes.
A second man, believed to be a former Wits student, was arrested on Wednesday, this time holding about 142 grams of dagga.
Both men have been handed over to Hillbrow police. [pullquote align=”right”]They watched as the alleged conman approached a first, second and then a third victim, attempting to convince them to hand over their cellphones [/pullquote]
The recent crackdown on drug-related crimes and other offences comes after Campus Control adopted a “zero-tolerance” approach to security, incorporating undercover operations and analysis of crime-trends data to combat crime.
Second dopeman
Campus Control security liaison manager Lucky Khumela said it was the third time the second man had been arrested on campus for selling dagga, his most recent arrest being in October 2013.
“We arrested him last year, in October around the 13th of the month. He says they (Hillbrow Police) just released him without telling him why,” Khumela said. He would not say where on campus the men were arrested, for fear of jeopardising on-going operations.
Hillbrow police said the man would appear in the Hillbrow Magistrate’s court on Friday on the charge of dagga possession.
Khumela, recently hired as liaison officer for the university’s security program, said Campus Control would be following the police and courts on the outcomes of these cases.
“The courts must come to their senses, this is a matter of the future of our students,” he said.
Cocaine copycat
In another development, undercover Campus Control officers arrested a man attempting to use a scam similar to that of the ‘Cocaine Conman’, reported in last week’s Wits Vuvuzela.
Wits Vuvuzela reported last week about a ‘cocaine con’ where a man would ask unsuspecting students to use their cellphones. He would then tell the students he was a drug dealer and needed to borrow their cellphones for a drug transaction.
The Cocaine Conman would then offer a bag of “cocaine” as security. The white powder would turn out to be flour or even mealie-meal.
On Tuesday, Campus Control officers spotted a man, fitting a different description than the one reported on by Wits Vuvuzela, attempting to con students out of their cellphones.
They watched as the alleged conman approached a first, second and then a third victim, attempting to convince them to hand over their cellphones but was rebuffed each time.
Finally, they watched as he approached a fourth student who fell for the scheme. Campus Control then swooped in and apprehended the man. He was handed over to Hillbrow SAPS and charged with theft.
Khumela revealed to the Wits Vuvuzela that the man is also believed to be operating on University of Johannesburg campuses.
WEED WATCH: Dagga seized by Campus Control from suspected dealers. Photo: Provided
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by Mfuneko Toyana | Feb 14, 2014 | Featured 1, News
New Guard: Campus Control‘s new liaision manager, Lucky Khumela, advises first years to be aware of crime on campus.
Photo: Mfuneko Toyana
What used to be a conference room inside Campus Control headquarters, Wits’s new security liaison manager, Lucky Khumela, sits behind his desk in the small room, smiling calmly, stroking the shiny, striped tie he is wearing.
“Police officers working in the suburbs love their jobs, more than those working in the township,” Khumela said.
“The magic behind that is very simple: appreciation. In the township they get ridiculed and taunted, here in the suburbs you find people who stop to say ‘thanks officer for doing your job’.”
However, ridicule and taunts are not limited to the townships with Wits security guards being the subject of abuse from students and their fellow staff members.
“Personally, I’ve seen how the security guards get ridiculed at the main gate by the so-called students and employees of Wits University. They get shouted at with things like: ‘It’s your job, you are not educated, you need to open the gate for me’,” he said.
Khumela is not fond of bureaucracy. He is quite the opposite, quoting philosopher Edmund Burke and revealing plans to center his approach to sexual violence on the poem “I Got Flowers Today” about a woman who is abused and ultimately killed by her partner.
[pullquote]getting Campus Control officers to “buy into the idea of being an officer that serves his community” [/pullquote]Wits is no stranger to the prescriptive, arms-length approach to an elusive security problem, one that has borne little enthusiasm from the student body. Khumela’s appointment, and the creation of post of liaison manager, represents a welcome change in approach.
“I want to sensitize the security workforce to understand their responsibility to the community and the university,” Khumela said
He pauses to lean back slightly in his chair, as if tossing around the significance of this statement, then adds:
“The two sides need to come together and understand each other’s responsibilities,” Khumela said.
He adds that he is busy assessing what type of training Campus Control officers may need to make this happen.
Beyond training, Khumela reckons it is mutual appreciation, and getting Campus Control officers to “buy into the idea of being an officer that serves his community” that will make the difference in crime prevention.
The qualified domestic violence facilitator says he is also aware of the need for Campus Control to embrace social media to improve communication with students. To this end, Witsies can now tweet @WitsSecurity to contact Campus Control.
RELATED ARTICLES:
‘Cocaine’ conman back on campus, February 14, 2014
Big Plans for Campus Control, April 12, 2013
