The South African Police Service (SAPS) of Stellenbosch has warned residents that they must take proactive measures to safeguard their vehicles against theft and break-ins.
“Vehicle theft has become a significant concern for [the] Stellenbosch [South African Police Service (SAPS)]. Whether you own a car, truck or motorcycle, taking proactive measures to safeguard your vehicle is crucial,” said Captain Nathalie Martin from SAPS Stellenbosch.
Campus security assessing a car break-in at a staff parking lot next to the Arts and Social Sciences building of Stellenbosch University (SU). Campus security is aware of a recent increase of vehicle break-ins on the SU campus, according to Dr Viljoen van der Walt, director of risk management and campus security at SU. PHOTO: Lara Smith
SAPS Stellenbosch has the third most reported cases of theft out of, or from, motor vehicles in South Africa. This is according to the crime statistics for October 2023 to December 2023, recently released by SAPS.
According to Dr Viljoen van der Walt, director of risk management and campus security at Stellenbosch University (SU), campus security was not aware of an upsurge in vehicle break-ins along preferred routes of the SU campus. However, he said that residents should still take safety precautions.
Some of these precautions include parking “in well-lit areas and install proper alarm systems”.
“A key message [to students and residents] is to refrain from leaving valuable items visible in your car. The ideal is to not leave any valuables in your car [at all],” said Van der Walt.
“Objects such as spark plugs are used to break the windows of cars in order to decrease the sound that is made when the window breaks,” said Wynand Basson, an eyewitness to a car break-in in a Stellenbosch University staff parking lot. PHOTO: Lara Smith
“[The] most frequent methods reported are [the] breaking of a back window to gain access [to the car]. More recently, cases of boot-locks being broken, and possibly remote jamming were reported,” said Van der Walt. “The Coetzenburg parking area is always a matter of concern, as there are many students and visitors frequenting the area – and they tend to leave valuable items inside their cars.”
‘It was already done’
One victim, who commented on condition of anonymity, had his car broken into earlier in March. His car was parked in one of the staff parking lots at SU.
“When I found out [that my car was broken into] it was already done. [Campus Security] took my details and they said that they are going to look at the footage,” said the victim.
Stellenbosch has seen the third most incidents of thefts from, or out of motor vehicles, in South Africa. This is according to crime statistics for October 2023 to December 2023. These statistics were recently released by the South African Police Service. PHOTO: Lara Smith
“[A group of children] were looking at every car, checking the doors to see if it’s open and looking through the windows […] and they found a car right here. They used a spark plug to break the window,” claimed Wynand Basson, an eyewitness to the aforementioned break-in.
“The owner of the car came and saw the window. He was confused because nothing was stolen in the car. [The car only contained] a bag with seat covers [inside],” said Basson.
Safety tips provided by Captain Nathalie Martin from Stellenbosch South African Police Service to minimise the risk of having one’s vehicle broken into. GRAPHIC: Lara Smith
Editor’s note: This article was updated due to incorrect information sent to the publication, initially indicating that Stellenbosch University (SU) was aware of an upsurge in break-ins in vehicles along the preferred routes of the SU campus. This was incorrect. The university has apologised for the error and the incorrect information has been corrected. Due to this, the headline of the article was also changed.