Cape Town - Anti-crime activists have asked the police to up their game as gangsters are now using explosives on the Cape Flats. This follows two incidents involving bomb explosions this week. No one was hurt.
In Hanover Park, a hand grenade was thrown at a house in Lucerne Road.
Police spokesperson Anelisiwe Manyana confirmed that an unidentified object was thrown by an unidentified person on to the premises on Thursday night.
“Damages were reported to the windows of the house. Nobody sustained any injuries. The unknown suspects fled the scene and are yet to be arrested. Philippi police registered a case of malicious damage to property for further investigation.”
In the second incident, in Uitsig near Ash Court, there were reports of a “bomb” being thrown.
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Police spokesperson Joseph Swartbooi said the Ravensmead members responded to a complaint on Tuesday.
“Upon arrival at the premises in Alwyn Road at around 12.30 they saw the need to secure the area and requested the assistance of the bomb disposal unit.
“The specialists inspected the suspicious device and deactivated it. The scene was declared safe. We can confirm that no loss of life or injuries was reported in any way.”
The bomb was a Lancer – a grenade which can be launched from a rifle.
Anti-crime activist Imraahn Mukaddam said the assumption that the gangsterism is becoming more like urban terror has escalated to the level of national security.
“They are now using bombs, hand grenades like the one that was used in
Hanover Park. There is an escalation that needs to be taken seriously.
“This means that they have escalated from common criminal gangs to being armed militias, to a new level of violence. It's time we change the language that we used in crime. This is a real threat to the national security.
“There is always the situation of stray bullets and innocents becoming hurt in the process and the arms used, it means there will be more collateral damage. The death toll in the past quarter is more that in the war between Ukraine and Russia in the last two years.
“The statistics have shown us that we are already living in the warzone.”
Mukaddam said the government should pump more resources into the Cape Flat.
“This means that different kinds of resources need to be deployed to get these guys. We think intelligence, that speaks to how they get hold of hand grenades, AK-47 and machine guns.
“On the one hand, we applaud the police for apprehending kidnappers and extortionists and cash-in-transit gangs, but on the other hand, gangsters are becoming more sophisticated and using much more dangerous weapons,” Mukaddam said. “And that is a clear indication that we can't treat gang violence and crime on the Cape Flats as business as usual, we have to step up and allocate more resources or view it in a much more serious light.
“And harsher penalties are needed from these guys from the courts, because an AK-47 is a weapon of war, it's not used for petty crimes or robbery, it is used when you are attacking the state and when you are rebel against the state. We want harsher punishment on those found with these.”
The police have appealed to anyone with information about the suspicious device to call Crime Stop on 08600 10111.