Macassar has been dubbed a human dumping ground as bodies pile up in the area amid prolonged load shedding.
Apart from the devastation wreaked by mass power blackouts on the economy and jobs, load shedding leaves communities more vulnerable to criminals.
Western Cape Premier Alan Winde said community members often complain to him about the link between load shedding and crime.
“Criminals are taking full advantage of rolling blackouts, preying on law-abiding citizens under the cover of darkness,” he said.
Statistics compiled by the SAPS in the Western Cape show the correlation between load shedding and crime.
A sample of contact crimes committed between December 2022 and January 2023 in the Western Cape included murders, attempted murders, aggravated robberies, rape, sexual assault, assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm, and common assault.
The property crimes analysed included burglaries (residential and business), theft out of/from motor vehicle and theft of motor vehicle. The overall findings from the analysis indicated the following percentage crime committed during load shedding:
• Contact Crime : 23.7%
• Property Crime: 29.2%
• Provincially, on average, 25.7% of the sample analysed occurred during load shedding.
Four bodies have been found dumped in Macassar between Saturday, May 27 and Saturday, June 3.
The ward councillor in Maccassar, Peter Helfrich, expressed his concerns about Macassar becoming a hotspot for criminals to dump bodies.
“It is also very clear that almost all of the bodies being dumped in the ward are bodies of persons who did not reside in the ward,” he said.
He further stated that Macassar is the only body dumping site, as it is shrouded in darkness.
According to Helfrich, the area has prolonged load shedding because Macassar is an Eskom-supplied area.
“Residents in our ward have forced themselves to make peace with load shedding. When the rest of the City is on Stage 4 and their power is switched on, we are left in the dark,” he said.
Helfrich said it would be amiss of him not to point out that the criminal activities, and especially the dumping of bodies, in their ward seem to coincide with load shedding, and especially the extended Eskom power outages they are experiencing.
“Apart from the dumping of the bodies, the home invasions/break-ins in our ward have increased, and as soon as the power is out, the shooting starts. Macassar has been facing a power crisis and criminals take advantage of this,” he said.
Western Cape police spokesperson, Colonel Andre Traut said that various factors can influence crime patterns in certain neighbourhoods, or certain times of the day, and it is no secret that criminals prefer the dark over well-lit areas to perpetrate a crime.
“The reasons are obvious, as there is a smaller chance that he or she will be identifiable and the chances of fleeing the scene undetected are greater. Load shedding unfortunately creates this opportunity for criminals, however, the respective communities are not left at their own fate during these schedules as visible policing is also heightened to neutralise the situation,” he said.
Traut concluded that the Western Cape police are well aware of all the influences on crime patterns and it is on this basis that evidence-based proactive policing and purpose-driven operations are executed in line with their policing strategy of the province to ensure the safety and security of the public.
Weekend Argus