East London police yesterday denied claims Beacon Bay police took two hours to respond to a burglary at the weekend that was just 2km away and in which a R70000 bicycle was stolen.
On Sunday, Beacon Bay resident Chesney Purcell, whose home had been broken into, took to social networks and claimed police arrived at his home more than two hours after he made a distress call.
“We called the police at 6am and only arrived at 8.30am; very disappointed,” Purcell wrote on Crime Spotter Buffalo City.
However police spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Mtati Tana had a different version of events.
“SAPS has a duty to serve and protect the community. According to the Beacon Bay station commander, the police received a call from the complainant at 7.15am and it was attended to before 7.42am and it is not true that police came at 8.30am.”
He added that the incident had not been a robbery in progress as it had already taken place.
Purcell, whose family lost household goods worth R150000 in the burglary, insisted yesterday that he had called the police shortly before 6am.
“My father and I called the police to alert them that we had just been robbed while we were sleeping on the top floor.
“The operator told us a van was being dispatched,” Purcell told the Daily Dispatch.
He said after an hour and no van in sight he decided to drive to the police station located just 2km away.
“When I got there a constable told me that a van had been dispatched. I drove back home and found that the police had still not arrived. It was only after 8am that they came,” said Purcell.
Purcell said the family of four had not heard the break-in.
“The burglar had apparently fiddled with the alarm system, broken a lounge window and gained entry.
“I think they got in at 3am. We were all sleeping on the top floor,” he said.
He said among the items stolen was a Giant bicycle belonging to his father Roger, valued at R70000, a plasma TV, two DStv decoders, a laptop, an amplifier, a bag of milk and ten bottles of whisky.
The suspect also made off with Purcell’s car keys and home keys. Purcell said he was grateful no one had been injured.
He said police were investigating a case of burglary and theft and that no suspects had been arrested yet. — zwangam@dispatch.co.za
Police deny victim’s ‘slow response’ claims
On Sunday, Beacon Bay resident Chesney Purcell, whose home had been broken into, took to social networks and claimed police arrived at his home more than two hours after he made a distress call.
“We called the police at 6am and only arrived at 8.30am; very disappointed,” Purcell wrote on Crime Spotter Buffalo City.
However police spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Mtati Tana had a different version of events.
“SAPS has a duty to serve and protect the community. According to the Beacon Bay station commander, the police received a call from the complainant at 7.15am and it was attended to before 7.42am and it is not true that police came at 8.30am.”
He added that the incident had not been a robbery in progress as it had already taken place.
Purcell, whose family lost household goods worth R150000 in the burglary, insisted yesterday that he had called the police shortly before 6am.
“My father and I called the police to alert them that we had just been robbed while we were sleeping on the top floor.
“The operator told us a van was being dispatched,” Purcell told the Daily Dispatch.
He said after an hour and no van in sight he decided to drive to the police station located just 2km away.
“When I got there a constable told me that a van had been dispatched. I drove back home and found that the police had still not arrived. It was only after 8am that they came,” said Purcell.
Purcell said the family of four had not heard the break-in.
“The burglar had apparently fiddled with the alarm system, broken a lounge window and gained entry.
“I think they got in at 3am. We were all sleeping on the top floor,” he said.
He said among the items stolen was a Giant bicycle belonging to his father Roger, valued at R70000, a plasma TV, two DStv decoders, a laptop, an amplifier, a bag of milk and ten bottles of whisky.
The suspect also made off with Purcell’s car keys and home keys. Purcell said he was grateful no one had been injured.
He said police were investigating a case of burglary and theft and that no suspects had been arrested yet. — zwangam@dispatch.co.za
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