Windhoek
A young man suspected of trying to cut through the roof of a local supermarket was arrested while apparently still in action on top of the roof of the building in the wee hours of Friday morning.
In CCTV footage provided by Windhoek’s City Police two men showed up at Woermann Brock in Goreangab informal settlement at 01h30. One climbed onto the roof and tried to cut a hole in it, while the other remained on the ground keeping watch.
But the man on the ground fled the scene when an unmarked police vehicle arrived. The man found on the roof was then asked to climb down and promptly arrested. He later claimed he was on the rooftop looking for his mobile phone, which a friend had apparently thrown onto the roof.
Nevertheless, the suspected roof-cutter was charged with two counts: attempted housebreaking and possession of housebreaking equipment.
City Police spokesperson Cillie Auala told a media briefing on Friday that through CCTV monitoring they observed two suspects trying to break into Woermann Brock. This was soon communicated to their zonal patrol members, who were in the vicinity at the time. Auala said the officers managed to arrest one suspect, who was on the roof trying to gain entry into the shop.
She urged the business community to come forth to assist the City police to expand CCTV coverage. “I just want to emphasise the importance of CCTV cameras. The CCTV project started in 2008 and has proven to be effective, especially in crime-prone areas installed with cameras. According to our statistics, it shows that crimes have totally decreased,” Auala remarked. She said they currently have 75 cameras installed in and around the city in crime-prone areas, but to be effective they need close to 1 000 cameras.
“These are not sufficient, looking at [the size of the] population of the city. In order to be successful, we’re talking about 400 to 1000 CCTV cameras needed and that is a long way to go. We urge the business community to come forth, assist and meet us halfway. If it wasn’t for these cameras Woermann Brock could have been broken into. If they can meet us halfway, that would be great.”
Auala added that businesses can assist with purchasing and installing the cameras, while the City Police provides the network and does the monitoring. She said community members can also come together and purchase CCTV systems for their local neighbourhood.