A network of security cameras has led to scores of arrests and the recovery of thousands of rand worth of stolen goods in the Voortrekker Road Corridor Improvement District (VRCID), in the past year.
Since July 2018 a total of 174 arrests have been made, 286 crimes recorded and over R220 000 in stolen goods recovered with the help of the VRCID’s 67 CCTV and 16 LPR (licence plate recognition) cameras, according to a statement by the VRCID.
Bellville police spokesman Captain Jonathan Blankenberg confirmed the data and said a number of arrests had been made recently, particularly in the CBD, with the help of organisations such as the VRCID.
VRCID chief operations officer Derek Boch said their public safety officers (PSOs) could now use their phones to access the street cameras, making for quicker response times.
“Our state-of-the-art security system has enabled our PSOs to respond to incidents within four and a half minutes.
“This is a significantly quicker turnaround time to the previous process whereby PSOs would have to receive a radio report with the location and nature of a crime, with the location easily miscommunicated or interpreted due to the nature of radio technology.”
Mr Block said the cameras could also identify illegal dumping culprits and those putting up illegal posters in the area.
