Have petrol stations become the favourite hunting grounds for criminals? Fuel attendants say customers are on their own
|Published
The pandemic of crime has often hit many South Africans while visiting petrol stations across the country while topping up fuel or buying supplies.
Some of the victims have been targeted while using automated teller machines (ATMs) which are often found at the filling stations. Similarly, the filling stations themselves have been hit by violent crimes including robberies targeting their cash safes.
The situation is compounded by lack of security personnel at the petrol stations, leaving hapless fuel attendants and customers running for dear life when rapacious criminals make an unannounced visit.
Amid widespread, less reported cases of unsuspecting customers being robbed of personal items including mobile phones at filling stations, South Africans earlier this month woke up to the shocking news of Kaizer Chiefs defender Luke Fleurs being fatally shot during a hijacking incident on 14th Avenue in Honeydew, Joburg.
Following the brutal murder, Gauteng provincial commissioner, Lieutenant General Tommy Mthombeni assigned a special SA Police Service (SAPS) task-team to investigate and arrest the killers.
On Friday, six men linked to the murder case made their first appearance before the Roodepoort Magistrate’s Court.
The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) said the men have been identified as Ndumiso Moswane; Fernando Sive; Nhlakanipho Dlamini; Franky Xaba; Maredi Mphahlele; and Thembinkosi Hlomikhawu.
The six men, believed to be part of a syndicate, were swiftly traced and arrested in Slovoville, Soweto. Fleurs’s car, a Volkswagen Golf 8 GTI, was found stripped.
Speaking to IOL, outspoken anti-crime activist and investigative television personality Yusuf Abramjee crime haunting filling stations has been on the increase.
“Forecourts are also being targeted. We are seeing dramatic increase in ATM bombings also. Filing stations are seen as easy target,” he said.
“Although most have cameras, it’s not a deterrent to these gangs. Security needs to be beefed up. The use or additional measures including the use of technology needs to be considered,” said Abramjee, who presents Crime Watch on eTV and eNCA.
He said the brazen criminals are using explosives to open drop safes at the filling stations.
“Stock is also stolen from the stores. We also seeing hijackings and robberies are on the increase at filing stations. The industry needs to urgently find ways to make filing stations safe.”
On the other hand, IOL also spoke to renowned criminologist, Prof Kholofelo Rakubu, who highlighted that petrol stations were highly vulnerable due to the calibre of attractive assets that are found at the stations.
“Due to high crime level in South Africa, each and every business is vulnerable and customers and staff members are highly vulnerable to victimisation. At least one violent crime is committed every day at a South African petrol station,” she said.
“To top it all, petrol attendants are amongst the most poorly paid employees in our formal economy. Petrol stations are highly vulnerable due to the calibre of attractive assets that are found at the stations,” said Rakubu.
“During robberies or attacks at the petrol stations, common targeted items include cash, money safes, customers’ cars, and cellphones, while ATMs are bombed. This has led to serious injuries and deaths of both customers, staff and armed response personnel.”
She said petrol stations are identified by criminals as “suitable places” to unleash their criminal acts because of glaring absence of a “capable guardian” that is the lack security, lack of devices to counter crime, and inefficient poor policing.
“The offenders studied safety at this petrol station to know how to access and exit the area and how long will it take for security officials stationed at the station to respond. This is the case with all other petrol stations across the country where safety is such a challenge and termed suitable target by the offenders,” said Rakubu.
“Clearly, security measures at the stations are not on par with the level of crime hence increased level of victimisation at petrol stations. Security measures implemented at petrol stations across the country are generally not extensive and not comprehensive. Poorly security analysis is conducted which fails to project the security threats against the petrol station which further fails to analyse the kind of a customer or community the station serves.”
Rakubu is the Head of Department at Tshwane University of Technology’s recently merged Department of Law, Safety and Security Management.
She said there is a link between crime, spatial planning urban and architectural design, and the use and management of the physical environment.
Absence of the application of the principles of crime prevention through environmental design (CPTED) exposes both staff and customers to crime. Although principles of CPTED are aimed at creating a safer physical environment, they also support the creation of well performing living environments in general.
Rakubu said levels of surveillance being implemented at petrol stations are extremely poor, hence it fails in most cases in the identification of the offender or spotting of crime before it occurs.
“Poor surveillance serves as security threat,” she said.
“Clearly petrol stations and certain types of criminal events at these stations are often deliberately chosen for their ease of access to escape routes by the offenders, prior to perpetrating the crime. Similarly, the availability of access and escape routes also add to the safety of potential victims.”
In the numerous recommendations as solutions to the scourge of crime targeting filling stations, Rakubu said improved security, partnership and stakeholder collaboration can play huge role in dealing with crimes at the petrol stations.
“Petrol stations work hand-in-hand with the South African Police Service, metro police and armed response security companies and continuous evaluation of the security systems at the petrol stations – commonly the CCTVs, alarm systems and safes,” she said.
The academic also prescribed improved cash management systems.
“Most petrol stations do not take customers’ safety to heart hence they employ poor security mechanisms. Therefore, the oil industry should look into taking ownership in terms of security and charge the service provider. This way they will ensure credible security and advanced technologies are utilised,” she said.
IOL visited some filling stations in Gauteng, where petrol attendants – speaking on conditions of anonymity, expressed grave concern for their own lives.
At a filling station along Lynnwood Road in Pretoria, one fuel attendant said repeated crimes have been unleashed on customers.
“We are employed here as fuel attendance and cashiers, but we are not security guards. Should we confront the brazen criminals with our caps? We are not trained for that. I can tell you, we have see customers losing cellphones. Friday nights and weekends are the favourite days for the criminals,” the employee said.
“Customers often very relaxed when they get to petrol stations, but they are on their own. We don not even warn them because management feels that that could scare away customers,” said the employee.
“These days, the police do not even come to the scene for so-called petty crime of being robbed of your cellphone. Our private security will arrive minutes later and just walk around with big guns, but the thieves will be long gone. We only advise the customer to register a case if the phone was insured, otherwise it’s a waste of time.”
There was apparent lack of visible security at almost all the filling stations visited by IOL.
“We rely on armed reaction teams, but that cannot help in cellphone or wallets grabbing incidents. The thieves who grab customers cars have vehicles idling and they get away in seconds. Customers are basically on their own,” said another fuel attendant in Joburg.
IOL