The Oranjemund Crime Wave!!!!

[Michael Alexander]

Well, What a day it turned out to be...  I went to open the shop this fine morning, and apon entering the building thought I could smell electrical wires burning..... as I walked past the Cash office, something caught my eye..... a pile of coins lay strewn across the table.... as I peered through the bars on the door, I discovered that the Safe had been cut open...... the cash office floor was covered in papers and empty bank bags.....it looked like a scene right outta The great Train robbery.....  above the room, the early morning sunshine streamed onto the scene....... I phone Nampol and The Crime Dept, in 20 minutes, there were at least 9 officials there, Ak47 's and all......

Turns out the bandits had tried 3 different spots on the roof , before finding the right spot..... they bypassed the alar on the roof, and turned of the light that is kept on in the cash office..... My camera's are outside the room and recorded the moment,  they knew how to do this...... as the sparks flew as the started to burn open the safe door.......

They took only cash, leaving the coins and phone cards... even leaving a camera....... the operation started at 01h00 this morning and lasted about 20 minutes or so...... During a later search on the roof.... pieces of a balaclava were discovered..... the razor wire had been cut in two places..... this was the thing that movies were made out of....

The store opened 2 hours later, with a surge of people entering......

It was discovered that two other smaller business's and a bar were also hit..... these guys were not locals....

During the course of the Afternoon , I was informed by Nampol, that they had a good idea who they were looking for..... and further reports indicate that two suspects had already been apprehended in a neighbouring town around lunchtime.....

Monday shall turn out to be indeed an interesting day......

I currently have two armed guards watching over the store for the night.....

it was reassuring how all ethnic groups of the community were indeed saddened by this, with a number commenting that they did not want this town of ours to "open".... I reckon I could start a petition to keep things they way they are.....

[SandyB]

Ok  so that explains your shitty day ...  not nice .. not nice .. they  should allow the  victims of crime a few unobserved minutes witht he aprehended  criminals ...

[Clive Symes]

Put them in the old fashion STOCKS  leave them in the centre of town for two days & march them out on the third.

[SandyB]

Love the medieval touch Clive ,, Mike  you could  give all your old culled  veg  to the crowd to pelt them  ...  if the locals irrespective of hue feel  somewhat the same .. they would enjoy this justice ...

[Delia]

So sad, so sad when i hear of things like this happening in my beloved hometown.............



- not the same town we knew and grew up in.....i console myself with the fact that no matter what, no-one can take away the memories locked away in my heart for ever, memories which i'll treasure for ever.

[Michael Alexander]

I remember people breaking into the squash court, Moths and one or two bars  back in the 70's!

[Delia]

I know, but the town opening more and more in recent years seems to have brought in an element that wasn't there when we were kids - a more hardened criminal type, adult criminals who've made it their lifestyle..........if i remember correctly those incidents from the 70's, weren't they kids "just getting up to mischief", looking for dop to go get plonked somewhere?

My earlier post was quite loaded with unsaid things - one being, what also came to mind was that incident of a young girl getting raped in town earlier in the year - the only thing we had to fear when walking around day or night was the gemmies, the thought of being attacked or raped didn't even enter our minds...........there just seems to be a more hardened criminal element in town.........i dunno, just my feelings on it.

[SandyB]

I  tend  to  second that one  Delia .. " hardened "  " proffesional "  " carreer  criminals " ... by  the way  Mike did they  get  the  Guys ??

[DUNJA WRBKA]

Any pics available Mike?

[Bertie Horak]

That's really sad.  Looks like it's a well planned move.  Must've been watching the premises/building/staff very closely.

Yes, by all means, start the petition Mike, and start an organization/committee which decides who should be able to move in.  (Just make sure I'm on the list!  At least I was born there, pleeeease!)

[Michael Alexander]

From what I understand the local Police left town this morning to drive to Bethanie to pick up two chaps in custody there..... there is also a third suspect they are looking for in Rosh Pinah....... a local who signed the mob in here in the first place and then the informer in the shop...... still waiting to hear.....

I was talking to a Spar lorry driver last week, we were talking about gangs in Cape Town in the 60;'s and early 70's.... the gangs had respect back then, honour...but these days those same areas are now blighted by thugs who have no respect for life........ in this sense, it's not just omund, but many other places in the world where things change!

[Alfred Boehme]

Our little Town is not what it used to be what a pitty

[Bertie Horak]

I suggest a public stoning of the culprits on the circle!

[Michael Alexander]

My "old" staff were not to happy with this story and have demanded that if the right culprits are caught, they would like to meet them in the Bulkstore oif the store for half an hour.......      

[Michele Alexander (Voden)]

I just wonder how much of the money got burnt as whilst sorting through the mess today I had to ditch a lot of burnt bags!



I must say how impressed I am with Nampol and Namdeb Security though, they are working hard on the case!