Crowbar robberies turn violent

Crowbar robberies took a violent turn when a Brackenfell resident was beaten, and a neighbour shot at burglars.

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Cape Town - Crowbar robberies took a violent turn this week when a Brackenfell resident was beaten in an attack, and a neighbour shot at burglars in another.

The robbers have recently been targeting the Goodwood and Pinelands areas where multiple break-ins are often reported on the same day.

It is believed that several crowbar gangs are operating around Cape Town – using crowbars they smash their way through front doors and burgle houses within minutes, before security companies can respond.

Trying to stay ahead of police, the burglars are driving upmarket cars in a bid to blend into the neighbourhoods they are terrorising.

This week police spokesman Captain FW van Wyk said a home in Sonkring, Brackenfell, was targeted on Thursday.

A mother, 60, her son, 27, and grandchild, 2, were inside at the time.

“It is alleged that the lady heard a noise at the front door. She thought it was someone knocking,” Van Wyk said.

The woman opened the door and three men then forced their way inside.

Van Wyk said she screamed and her son ran to her rescue. There was a scuffle between him and the men, and the son’s hand and leg were injured.

Van Wyk said the robbers grabbed a laptop they saw on a table before fleeing in a dark Toyota Verso.

In a second incident on Thursday, the front door of a home in Tygerdal, Goodwood, was forced open.

Van Wyk said: “The neighbour saw a charcoal BMW in the driveway and two suspects loading two TV sets into the vehicle.

He approached them and one suspect pointed a firearm at him and then fled.

“The neighbour then fired a shot at the BMW.”

No arrests were made in either incident.

A week ago a Tygerdal resident told Weekend Argus that crowbar burglaries were becoming so common that some community members had threatened to deal with the burglars themselves instead of first calling the police.

He said the burglars appeared to be well-organised and were targeting specific homes.

In a recent message to clients, City Bowl Armed Response owner Alan Kusevitsky warned that the burglaries were well organised and planned.

The burglars gathered intelligence beforehand, which included stealing post out of letter boxes and matching the name and address to a telephone number.

The burglars would then call the number to see if anyone was home.

Kusevitsky said the burglars then tried to blend in with the area they were targeting.

“They are often well-dressed and well-spoken, and often drive upmarket vehicles that have been stolen or rented.

“This is called ‘urban camouflage’ and this helps them blend in, especially into upmarket neighbourhoods.”

Weekend Argus