Four suspects were arrested in and around Hermanus in separate incidents recently, and in each case the town’s network of CCTV security cameras proved instrumental.

“The Hermanus Public Protection team monitors a network of cameras that have been strategically installed all around town. These cameras are valuable tools in identifying crime and they have proven their worth time and time again,” says Marius Boshoff, Hermanus Branch Manager for Fidelity ADT.

In the most recent incident (on Tuesday 10 November 2020), the CCTV operators observed a suspicious vehicle in the CBD moving towards Zwelihle. It was kept under observation, and local security officers were asked to intercept the vehicle when it was again spotted, this time with a canopy that it did not have earlier.

“Camera operators became very suspicious when they saw the canopy fall off, which led them to believe that the canopy did not in fact belong to the vehicle in question. Two occupants of the vehicle were taken into custody on charges of possible possession of stolen property,” says Boshoff.

In the other incidents, the cameras again helped with successful arrests after suspicious activity was observed. On Thursday 29 October, a suspect was nabbed with a bicycle that was allegedly stolen in Onrus earlier. He was also found with mandrax in his possession. Meanwhile on Wednesday 28 October, a suspect was arrested for possession of suspected stolen items after he was seen walking with a trolley full of steel in the Industrial area.

“Well done to the camera teams for being alert and on the lookout for suspicious activity. It is their excellent training backed up with the on-the-ground backup from police and armed response colleagues, that will make this town safer,” says Boshoff.