Dedicated vehicle strengthens crime fighting force in Chatsworth
Blue Security has strengthened its crime fighting presence in Chatsworth with the launch of a dedicated vehicle that will patrol the suburb of Umhlatuzana from December 7.
From the back left is Blue Security MD Henk van Bemmelen, community chairman Nandha Govender, response officer Nhlangulela Mduduzi and Blue sales consultant Meryl Perumal. In the front is the community vice chairman Vino Govender and Blue special projects manager Stephen Wimborne.
Resident Nandha Govender said local members of the Bayview Community Policing Forum and the Civic Executive Committee had decided to work more closely with the company to create a Blue Zone to combat crime. “We previously had four or five different security companies looking after us and it wasn’t doing us any favours. We decided to change over to Blue Security because they gave us the service we were really looking for, although we do have a good relationship with all of the security companies,” he said.
Govender said the community had decided to create the Blue Zone, which includes a dedicated vehicle service, because it believed visible policing would help to reduce crime. He said incidents of housebreaking and theft of motor vehicles had been a problem in the suburb in recent years.
According to Govender the community worked closely on the CPF with Silverglen residents, who had also recently decided to strengthen ties with Blue Security to create their own Blue Zone. “We also understand that having a dedicated vehicle in the suburb will reduce response times, as the officer will not have to travel through traffic and several robots to get here,” Govender said.
Silverglen Selfhelp Committee chairman Shaun Hammond said serious and violent crimes had been reduced to zero while petty crime had dramatically declined since the launch of the dedicated vehicle in the suburb in October. “When we were doing our survey to see which security company to go for we decided that we were not looking for cheap, we were looking for the best. We immediately identified with Blue’s principles and decided it was what we wanted. The best move we made was to go with the best and they want to be better all the time,” Hammond said.
“When criminals change their strategies, Blue Security changes its strategies to constantly be ahead. We have such a good working relationship with Blue and we are in constant contact with the patrolling officer and have a radio linked to their control centre,” Hammond said. Hammond added that the service had helped residents to get some rest as they had spent years personally patrolling the streets to keep the suburb safe.
Blue Security Special Projects manager Stephen Wimborne said the company looked forward to working with Umhlatuzana residents.
“We are excited to be launching the dedicated vehicle service into the suburb and to be strengthening our existing relationship with residents. Research has shown that visible policing has a positive impact on the fight against crime as the risk of arrest is heightened which makes criminals think twice and move on in search of softer targets,” he said.
