Khayelitsha residents are concerned about the escalating crime in the area and appealing for urgent intervention by law enforcement agencies.
The remarks were sparked by the recent discovery of Abirah Dekhta in Town Two.
The eight-year-old was kidnapped at Gatesville in Athlone on Friday 4 November before being found at SST informal settlement on Monday 16 November.
At the time of her disappearance, Abirah Dekhta was on her way to school.
Khayelitsha Community Policing Forum (CPF) chair Monde Bambelo described the escalating crime as worrisome.
He urged law enforcement agencies to intensify security in the area. He believes the installation of closed-circuit cameras around the neighbourhood will assist in the fight against crime.
“We were all shocked when the news came out that the young girl was kept here. What we discovered was that some of the perpetrators in this incident are not from Khayelitsha. It is clear that people are committing the crime in other places and running to Khayelitsha,” he stated.
Bambelo highlighted extortion, car hijacking and kidnapping as some of the dominant crimes in the area. He also called for different community stakeholders to unite against crime
“We need to conduct awareness about extortion, kidnapping and other forms of crime to educate the community. We need to build trust between the community and the police. People are scared to give tip-offs to the police because they are not sure what will follow next. So, the police need to protect the witnesses,” said Bambelo.
Eric Ntabazalila, the spokesperson for the National Prosecuting Authority in the province, said seven men appeared at the Wynberg Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday 22 November on the charges of kidnapping and extortion.
“The State alleges that on Friday 4 November around 07:20 the victim was in a learner transport waiting to pick up another learner. Two vehicles stopped around the learner transport and five men alighted the vehicles. They snatched the girl and drove off with her,” he said.
Ntabazalila said on Monday 14 November the police received a tip-off that she was kept in a house in Town Two. “Police observed three men who were patrolling outside the house. There were four other men inside the house when police made the arrest. There were two women also arrested but they were not brought to court as they cannot be linked to the case,” said Ntabazalila.
He stated that all the accused will appear again in court on Wednesday 7 December for bail application.