[Pic] S.Africa: Farm Attacks in Cities - 10,000+ attacks in 1 year

[Take a look at today's utterly shocking headline in Johannesburg's Saturday Star newspaper. Criminals in the cities are now using the same "precision military methods" that they've been using in Farm Attacks! Its hidden in the crime statistics under the category "aggravated robbery".

Note the references to military tactics:-

1. Reconnaissance of the target beforehand.

2. Secret signals left outside the house for other members of the gang.

3. Heavily armed gangs.

4. They use violence including rape and people most often are hurt.

The Govt does not want to recognise this as a serious problem, but according to experts there were over 10,000 such attacks in 1 year! As always, the Govt has very little interest in dealing with crime (as I have warned for years), and this no doubt adds to the criminals being as bold as they are.

Do you know that now they even have something reminiscent of "Rhodesian Fireforce" in South Africa? It is not here on a large scale - but it does exist. They use these big airforce Puma helicopters with armed Police wearing bullet-proof vests and military rifles and they fly over the city ready to drop them off on to criminals or places where gunfights are taking place! Obviously, there are not many of these teams. I saw it on TV the other day. I have seen an airforce Puma helicopter flying a few times in recent weeks as it hunts for criminals. But... as with everything they do... don't hold your breath. A handful of such teams in a country where hundreds of thousands of crimes are perpetrated won't change anything. Its far too little and far too insignificant.

It is interesting that this article about the new criminal tactics came up because I had wondered to myself how the crime situation would evolve since, with our security companies, our walls, fences and our other security procedures we were becoming ever harder targets for criminals to nail. In some respects, we have been holding out well despite the mass of criminals and their violence. It seems now things are moving to the next level... we're being attacked by military-style gangs in our homes!

There is one item that might not be obvious in the story below. It is that criminals will steal your car and dump it. This is because most vehicles in S.Africa now have satellite tracking devices in them - so the criminals won't keep your car because the satellite tracking companies will have their own teams (some operating by helicopter) hunting down your car. So the criminals only use your car temporarily and then dump it.

Of course, the Govt doesn't give a rat's ass about this latest and most horrific development. In S.Africa, small apartments sell for much more than houses because people are too afraid to live in houses. They rather live in secure villages complete with electric fences and other security procedures. Walls are also no joke anymore. 6 foot walls are old hat. Nowadays, walls surrounding apartment complexes are very high. Jan]



By: Sheree Russouw

Sophisticated urban criminals are exploiting the same tactics used in farm attacks to hit homes in residential suburbs in South Africa's major cities.

Henri Boshoff, a military analyst at the Institute for Security Studies (ISS), told the Saturday Star yesterday that the military precision "house attacks' in cities was very similar to farm attacks.

After attending scenes of “so-called aggravated house robberies” around Gauteng (Johannesburg) in the past three months, he concluded that the modus operandi criminals used in those incidents was the same as farm attacks.

From March 2005 to March 2006 South Africa recorded 10173 incidents of aggravated house robberies. Gauteng accounted

for half, at a staggering 5 909.

Boshoff is calling for the police to classify "house attacks" as a separate crime category, as farm attacks are categorised, because a variety of crimes including murder, rape and hijacking occurred during those incidents.

"The government needs to see this crime as a priority and put a task team on to it. That's the only way to stop these syndicates. We need more-visible and proactive policing," he said.

"There is no difference between these house attacks and farm attacks. Houses are being targeted and someone is doing some reconnaissance. They find out what is in the house in terms of money and jewellery, and the movements of people.

"They are even using the same kind of markings as they use in farms such as Coke bottles, stones and sticks (placed outside the property) to warn others (in the gang) at there are dogs or to be careful because there are weapons in the house.

"Then the team hit the house. They use very military types of actions and all are well armed, very aggressive and violent - that's how they shock the inhabitants. The most obvious times this is happening is

when residents are home, because they want them to open their safes.

"You could be busy having a braai (barbeque), and they hold you up and rob you. If you're lucky they won't shoot you, but in most

cases they do hurt people."

Most attacks, Boshoff said, happened after 8pm. And often, houses in affluent suburbs, “where they know there is money and jewellery", are targeted.

Cellphones were not valuable to the criminals, while victims' cars were merely used to get away from the scene and were dumped later.

Hangwani Mulaudzi, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Safety and Security said he didn't want to comment on Boshoff's findings but said it was unlikely the police would make "house attacks" a separate category.

"It's house robbery You can't call it an attack. People enter the house, and when you go to court you can dissect the crimes individually. It's already categorised as housebreaking or robbery."

Dr Jotan Burger of the ISS said it was alarming that farm attacks were "seeping into cities".

"It seems as if criminals are becoming bolder by the day, and they can only do that if they have enough confidence that they won't get caught," he said.

South Africans were tired of being powerless victims of crime and had little faith in the police and the justice system.

"If the government is as serious as it says it is, then it must now take the lead and give this fight the sort of urgency one would expect if we were confronted with a military threat - but we don't see that."

Mulaudzi added it was very sad when people generalised about crime in South Africa. "The police are working hard to protect this country and its constitution. Yes, we do have a crime problem but it's not unique to South Africa. It's global."

Source: The Saturday Star, Page 1, 6 January 2007.

Date Posted: Sunday 14-Jun-2009
Your article dates back two years. In the meanwhile the gangs have gotten bolder, they walk into your house in bright daylight, sometimes just midday or so. Strange enough it seems that no one ever gets caught. How come?

wurzelsepp
cape town