Umm Muhammed Umar

KwaZulu Natal security company Reaction Unit of South Africa, or RUSA, has warned the public about a new gang operating in the Verulam central business district. The gang apparently targets shoppers and motorists. Radio Islam spoke to RUSA spokesperson, Prem Balram, who said that several common robberies and theft out of motor vehicles had been reported in the past few days.

The gang seems linked to hundreds of cases. Balram said that the gangs consist of four to five males, who enter the CBD during daylight hours and observe shoppers and motorists. They then approach them and rob them of their cash, cell phones and wallets. The victims are stabbed before the gang flees.

Three suspects were arrested by at the end of June, with the kingpin having been identified. Balram said that they had been in custody at the Verulam SAPS, and appeared in court. One was released, and two were remanded in custody. The Kingpin was linked to a murder committed in May this year.

Balram said that there had been hundreds of robberies over a period of a few months. And in 30 to 40 (clips) of the CCTV footage, the three suspects could be seen moving together in the CBD, committing the robberies. He said, “In some cases, they were wearing masks, but these masks would fall off when they were fleeing, and people would see them or capture them on video camera.” He added, “the kingpin was known for carrying a firearm and the rest of his men would usually use Okapi knives.”

According to Balram, the suspects were not involved in home invasions. They would usually stick around the Greenbelt around the CBD, meaning they would stay near the area that they could flee into, where there were bushes, railway lines, abandoned buildings nearby.

where they would flee to. So their modus operandi was to rob and clean to these bushes so they will not leave only oh, maybe, but the information was received and it was positive that the king was charged for murder yet murder the man by facing him onto an electrical cable in May 2022 and killed him.

Balram’s advice to motorists and shoppers was:

• Don’t park in isolated areas
• Don’t keep your windows open
• Keep vehicle doors locked
• Keep your valuables out of sight
• Don’t wear valuable jewellery
• Don’t carry a handbag
• Don’t flaunt any kind of cash around the ATM’s