In the case of the burglary at the Gift of the Givers‘ offices in Athlone, 10 people were arrested in a joint operation involving the City of Cape Town law enforcement and the Cape Town police.
Also read: Gift of the Givers: Humanitarian organisation’s offices burgled
Criminals made off with a laptop, television, office chairs and relief packs for the Western Cape fire victims as they ransacked the offices of the Gift of the Givers over the weekend.
This is according to the project manager for the humanitarian organisation, Ali Sablay, who told News24 that staff arrived at work on Monday morning to find the offices in disarray.
According to Sablay, the stolen laptop had the names of people and charities who required relief, adding that the theft of this data would delay aid as organisations would now be required to re-register.
As reported by IOL, provincial police spokesperson Captain Frederick van Wyk said the operation was conducted by members of the Maitland Flying Squad, SAPS K9, National Intervention Unit, Metro Police, Metro K9, and law enforcement.
Captain van Wyk said, “Information was received that four premises in Hanover Park were storing suspected stolen property, allegedly taken during a housebreaking and theft at the warehouse of a non-profitable organisation.”
“A case was reported at Lansdowne SAPS. Upon searching the identified premises various stolen property was recovered which was identified by a representative of the organisation as their property taken during the commission of the said crime.”
Sablay told IOL that the community played a big part in assisting the police to recover some of the stolen items.
Sablay said, “All credit is due to the community who called Gift of the Givers office lines and remained anonymous. Those who contacted the South African Police Service and gave us the addresses where to find the stolen goods. It was all 100% correct. Some items were found.”
“Some suspects have been taken in. The operation is ongoing.”
Van Wyk confirmed that 10 male and female suspects, aged between 20 and 40, were arrested for possession of the stolen property and are being detained at the Philippi Police Station for further questioning.
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Picture: South African Police Service