GRAAFF-REINET NEWS — Three cases of note were opened in Aberdeen in the last week.
A business burglary took place from a shop in Thembalesizwe on 20 July, at about 13:30. According to the complainant, when he returned from the mosque he found the police standing in front of his shop. The door locks had been forced open and various items of stock had been stolen, to the value of R1 810. No arrests have yet been made.
The second case is of culpable homicide after one passenger in a minibus taxi died as a result of an accident on 25 July at about 06:15. The accident took place near the junction of the R61 and the N9, known locally as the Cross. The Quantum minibus, with three passengers, was travelling from Beaufort West towards Aberdeen, and allegedly did not yield at the stop sign at the junction before turning left on the N9 towards Graaff-Reinet. The minibus collided with a truck travelling from Willowmore towards Graaff-Reinet.
Two of the minibus passengers were slightly injured in the accident and taken to Aberdeen Hospital for treatment and later discharged. The third passenger was trapped in the vehicle and passed away due to injuries sustained. The driver of the minibus had more serious injuries and was taken to Midland Hospital in Graaff-Reinet. No one in the truck was injured.
The third case, of theft out of a motor vehicle, took place on 27 July at about 13:00. According to the complainant, he and his employee went to lunch and left his vehicle parked in front of his shop in Grey Street. His employee heard a noise coming from the vehicle, and when she went to investigate, found the suspect inside the vehicle. When the owner got to the vehicle, he discovered that a knife worth R700 and some small change were missing. The suspect is known to the police, and the investigation is continuing.
There was a mixed bag of crimes reported in Graaff-Reinet.
The first was an attempted burglary at a business premise in Caledon Street. The incident took place on 23 July at about 00:45, when according to the complainant, the roof was cut open, but nothing was stolen. The damage is estimated at R15 000. There are no suspects at this stage.
In a stock theft case, 13 sheep were taken out of the kraal at Rynheath on 22 July at about 22:00. The suspects were disturbed while busy cutting off the sheep’s heads and they fled, leaving all 13 sheep at the scene. All 13 sheep were recovered, although they had all been slaughtered. The value of the slaughtered livestock amounts to R26 000. The suspects are unknown at this stage.
The next case was a business burglary. The crime was committed between 24 July (16:00) and 25 July (07:25) at Umasizakhe Sports Field, Graaff-Reinet. According to the complainant, he locked the storeroom on 24 July before leaving the premises, and upon his return the next day, he found the storeroom’s door had been forced open. Upon further investigation, he noticed that garden tools were missing from the storeroom. The estimated value of tools is R4000. There are no known suspects at this stage of the investigation.
There was a residential burglary in Umasizakhe on 27 July between 03:00 and 06:40. According to the complainant, all the doors of the house were locked. At about 06:40, the complainant found that her kitchen door had been forced open. Cell phones to the value of R3000 had been stolen.
The second burglary took place at Santaville on 29 July, between 01:00 and 02:00. According to the complainant, she went out with family but was later informed by a neighbour that her house had been broken into and windows were broken. Various items to the value of R2 150were stolen
A third incident took place in Umasizakhe on 30 July at about 18:10. According to the complainant, the residence was locked properly and all windows closed when she left, but when she arrived later the evening, she noticed that a door had been forced open and that a television was missing from the residence. The value of the missing television is R1 000.
There was a case of culpable homicide opened after an accident on 27 July on the N10 towards Cradock, 62 km from Graaff-Reinet. At about 08:59 a white Toyota Quantum was travelling on the N10, and it is alleged that the axle of the trailer broke, whereby the driver lost control of the vehicle which then overturned. One of the passengers, a 37-year-old male, passed away at the scene. Sixteen adults and two minors were taken to Cradock Hospital for treatment
A case of arson was opened after an incident on 28 July at about 20:00 in Santaville. The incident is domestic related. According to the complainant, she was having a drink with her boyfriend who started to argue with her about a girlfriend of hers who is, according to the suspect, always under the influence of liquor. The complainant stood up, went into a shack at the back of the yard. The suspect then came after her with petrol and threw it on the shack and set it alight. Both the residence and the shack burnt down. The value of the damaged property amounts to about R10 000. The suspect has not yet been arrested, and the case is still under investigation.
The final case involves the theft of a motor vehicle. The incident took place at Napier Street, Graaff-Reinet on 29 July between 18:00 and 21:30. According to the complainant, the vehicle was parked in front of the house, and when he later during the night looked out of the window to check on the vehicle, he found that it was missing. The value of the vehicle is R30 000.
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