Spikings: Stay alert, advises AfriForum

AfriForum urgently appeals to motorists to stay vigilant of spiking traps on main routes in the Pretoria area. Since last year, the civil rights organisation has been monitoring trends related to traps in which iron spikes, rocks and other items are used to target, rob and in some cases kill motorists. However, the occurrence of traps was still alarmingly common in the past few months, and AfriForum’s neighbourhood watches will now intensify their efforts to combat spikings and other related crimes on roads and assist victims.

Incidents that have been recorded in Pretoria and surrounding areas in the past few months, according to AfriForum, occurred especially on the N1, N4, N12, N14, R566 and R80. However, the organisation warns that incidents are not limited to these routes.

“AfriForum’s neighbourhood and farm watches in the areas adjacent to these hotspots will continue to intensify their efforts in these areas. We have also developed a specific training module to empower our patrollers to deal with this crime effectively,” says Jacques Broodryk, AfriForum’s Chief Spokesperson for Community Safety.

From the data that AfriForum has collected on these crimes, certain trends have emerged. This shows, among other things, that although these crimes occur any day of the week, the attacks mainly take place during the night and the early hours of the morning.

Furthermore, it was found that the perpetrators work in groups of two to ten individuals and are usually armed with anything from sharp objects, such as knives, to firearms. Criminals use various techniques to force vehicles to stop, including placing spikes on the road; placing dummies on the road to look like injured people; using rocks to create roadblocks; or throwing rocks at moving vehicles from overhead bridges with the aim of forcing the driver to stop or lose control of the vehicle and crash.

AfriForum encourages the public to report all incidents to the South African Police Service (SAPS) and their nearest AfriForum neighbourhood watch.

The organisation also urges the public to follow these important safety measures to protect themselves from such incidents:

• Do not stop your vehicle under any circumstances after an incident where the tires, windscreen, or other parts have been damaged. Continue driving as far as possible until you reach a safe destination.
• Contact local neighbourhood watch groups, security companies or emergency services as soon as possible to report the incident. Provide detailed information about the object used in the trap and its location to help prevent further attacks on other motorists.
• Ensure your phone is fully charged before embarking on your journey.
• Share your location with loved ones, especially when travelling alone.
• Stay alert and develop the habit of scanning the road ahead for potential threats, suspicious objects or individuals on next to the road.
• Store emergency contact numbers of local emergency services, neighbourhood watches or security companies on your phone.
• Consider installing an emergency response app, such as AfriForum’s free 911 panic button app, available on the Google Play Store (for Android devices) and the App Store (for iOS devices).

Visit AfriForum’s campaign page at www.roofroetes.co.za to keep up to date with new developments and initiatives related to this campaign.

Get involved with your local AfriForum neighbourhood watch today. Visit www.afriforumbuurtwag.co.za for more information.