The police have warned Table View residents to check their security following a series of home invasions and robberies in the area in recent weeks.
There have been at least four such incidents in the area since the end of March, including the murder of 53-year-old Vandy Fourie, who was found dead in her Parklands home on Thursday March 28 (“Parklands murder suspects arrested,” Tabletalk, April 3). Ms Fourie died from blunt-force trauma, her home was ransacked and several household items and her car were stolen.
Just before 1am on Saturday March 30, two men broke down the door of a Porterfield Road home and confronted the homeowner who was sitting in the lounge.
“The men threatened the woman in her home, and took cash and cellphones. The victim managed to escape and sought help. The suspects fled the scene presumably on foot,” said Table View police spokesperson Captain Adriana.
In the early hours of Monday April 1, two men broke into a home in Bayway Road, according to Captain Chandler.
“The victim stated that he was asleep when he woke up with two unknown men inside his house. He immediately pressed his panic button, and armed-response officers were on the scene shortly afterwards. The two suspects grabbed a cellphone and a dagger before fleeing on foot,” she said.
Not far from the scene, police arrested a 29-year-old suspect, a foreign national.
On Wednesday night April 3, an intruder climbed through an open bathroom window at a home in a North Road complex while the occupant was sleeping.
Captain Chandler said the intruder threatened the occupant with a gun and fled through a patio door, taking laptops, a cellphone and headphones.
Acting Table View police chief Lieutenant Colonel Hendrik Nel urged the community to “make sure that all security measures are activated when at home, such as locking all doors and closing all windows before going to bed”.
Meanwhile Captain Chandler said police were still trying to track down the two men who were caught on video attacking a woman on the corner of Gie and Circle roads in Parklands, on Sunday March 17 (“Attack on woman caught on video,” Tabletalk, March 20).
The 52-year-old, who was stabbed 24 times in full view of several witnesses, was admitted to the Dunoon hospital and has since returned home, according to Captain Chandler.
“There are no arrests made yet, but there is video footage from a nearby school where the suspects were caught on camera. Detectives are combing through the footage to find any clear images of the suspects,” said Captain Chandler.
Table View resident Brendan Goosen called on police to increase patrols in the area.
“We are living in fear. It’s bad enough that we are not safe while out taking a walk or going to the shops, but the fact that criminals can be bold enough to break into houses while the people are inside sleeping – that is just crazy. What have we done to deserve such incompetence from our government? Clearly these criminals don’t respect us, the police or the ruling government. Our police and other law enforcement need to be more visible,” he said.
Table View police have advised the public to check that doors are locked and all windows are closed, even when at home; activate alarms and, if you don’t have one, consider installing one; switch on outer perimeter lights when going to sleep or install motion-detection lights; try to make your home as inaccessible to criminals as possible; and join your local neighbourhood watch.
