Alleged cable thief arrested following blackout in Gillitts

Six suspects jumped out of the vehicle and fled into the valley and the driver was arrested.

See the original article from the Highway Mail: https://highwaymail.co.za/345314/alleged-cable-thief-arrested-following-blackout-gillitts/

GREAT team work by Blue Security’s tactical team, the police and neighbourhood watch patrollers led to the arrest of a suspect and recovery of a vehicle, allegedly used by a cable theft gang, in the Gillitts area on Friday morning, 15 November.

Blue Security tactical ambassador, Russel Lawson said security teams were alerted to the presence of the gang after a localised power fault occurred in the neighbourhood.

ALSO READ: Pinetown cable thief sentenced to 15 years

“Our armed response officers and another local security firm responded and patrolled the known cable theft hot spots in the area where they eventually discovered the scene of a cable theft in Azalea Road. It was the second time over the past three days that electrical cable theft has been reported in the area,” Lawson said.

According to Lawson, a Gillitts neighbourhood watch patroller then spotted a suspicious vehicle in the area and SAPS were called to the scene while their officers intervened to intercept the vehicle in Stockville Road.

Six suspects jumped out of the vehicle and fled into the valley.

“Police arrested the driver of the vehicle and recovered three cellphones that the suspects had left inside the vehicle. The police took over at the scene and impounded the vehicle for further investigation,” Lawson said.

“We are committed to working closely with local neighbourhood watch groups and the police to fight crime in the area. We trust that this latest arrest sends a strong message to criminals that we are serious about combating all levels of crime in the neighbourhood. We are confident that as a strong force working smartly together against crime we can make our neighbourhood safer for everyone who lives and works here,” Lawson said.

Highway Mail, Alleged cable thief arrested following blackout in Gillitts, viewed 20 Nov 2019, https://highwaymail.co.za/345314/alleged-cable-thief-arrested-following-blackout-gillitts/

Cheers, Matt!

Today we bid farewell to one of our valued team members as he moves out of the area.

Matthew Jackson was a founding member of the G2 Community Network and has served continuously for the last five years, as a patroller, committee member, and a member of the comms team.

The Gillitts 2 community thanks you for your selfless service and we wish you and Rosie health and happiness in your new home.

Cheers, Matt!

From the G2 Team

Blue Dedicated Vehicle

The G2 Dedicated Vehicle

It’s been more than five years since discussions were initiated and we are excited to announce that a dedicated armed response vehicle from Blue Security will be deployed to the Gillitts 2 area on 1st April 2019. This Project means that a Blue and G2 branded Nissan NP200 will patrol, stand off and respond to incidents exclusively within the G2 area.

Previously the G2 area shared a vehicle with neighboring areas and as a result our area would at times have no security vehicle presence.

Advantages of a dedicated vehicle include:

Dedicated zone
The vehicle is deployed to service one area only

Quick Response
Alarm signals are received directly by the dedicated vehicle resulting in quicker reaction times

Patrols
The vehicle patrols our footprint extensively and can be allocated to high visible stand-off locations which provides a very visible presence of armed response in our area

Lower Crime Rates
A dedicated service is very effective in displacing crime to areas without one thereby benefiting all G2 residents.

G2 Patrols Benefits
The G2 Patrol Team will also be able to contact the CPO (Community Protection Officer) directly in order to request assistance for issues that may come through on our emergency resident groups. Preference will however be given to Blue Client callouts but we as G2 will be able to work closely with the vehicle, thereby assisting G2 in our crime prevention and awareness objectives.

The Gillitts 2 Project Announcement document distributed by the Blue Project Manager Keith du Rant is appended to this notice for your information.

WhatsApp – Remove for Everyone

Woops! You’ve posted something in error onto one of the G2 Emergency Groups. If you’ve posted something in error to a group you can remove the message for everyone by using the following visual guide:

For Android Smart-Phones – Hold your finger down on the message and then:

For Apple Smart Phones – Hold your finger down on the message and then: 

Remember, your message goes out to hundreds of people and creates unnecessary work for admin. 

To all other users, as usual, please refrain from responding in the emergency channel. Rather message the person directly.

Further information can be found in the WhatsApp FAQ here:

Android – https://faq.whatsapp.com/en/android/26000068/

iOS – https://faq.whatsapp.com/en/iphone/26000069/?category=5245251

Windows – https://faq.whatsapp.com/en/wp/26000070/?category=5245251

Why you should think twice before posting suspects’ photos online

Why you should think twice before posting suspects’ photos online

The Police have raised concerns about photos and/or videos of suspects being posted on social media platforms and how the risk associated with it may have a negative impact on judicial procedures.

The following points should be noted:

  • A SAPS identity parade will not be conclusive: It may be argued that the witness or victim saw the suspect’s face on social media and identified the suspect based on the image portrayed rather than physically having seen the suspect commit the crime.
  • The suspect may not be charged for the criminal incident.
  • Pictures or videos may alert the suspect and their accomplices that the police are aware of who they are: This may lead to the suspects fleeing without being caught.

The South African Police Services Act 68 OF 1995

Section 69

Prohibition on publication of photographs or sketches of certain persons in custody

(1) For the purposes of this section-‘photograph’includes any picture, visually perceptible image, depiction or any other similar representation of the person concerned; and’publish’, in relation to a photograph or sketch, includes to exhibit, show, televise,represent or reproduce.

(2) No person may, without the written permission of the National or Provincial Commissioner, publish a photograph or sketch of a person

(a) who is suspected of having committed an offence and who is in custody pending a decision to institute criminal proceedings against him or her;

(b) who is in custody pending the commencement of criminal proceedings in which he or she is an accused; or

(c) who is or may reasonably be expected to be a witness in criminal proceedings and who is in custody pending the commencement of his or her testimony in such proceedings.

(3) Any person who publishes a photograph or sketch in contravention of subsection (2), shall be guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to a fine or to imprisonment for a period not exceeding 12 months.

It is for this reason that we do not allow photos of previously convictedor arrested suspects to be posted in our emergency channels.