Cape Town - The residents of Salberau, in Elsies River, are demanding that a notorious property, 6 Rocky Close, be shut after numerous complaints of illegal activities and the recent alleged rape of a 12-year-old girl by four teenage boys aged from 14 to 16.
There have been ongoing disputes between the house’s illegal occupants and residents.
On Wednesday evening, police were called to the house as residents gathered outside it, demanding its occupants evacuate it and the area.
Elsies River Community Police Forum (CPF) spokesperson Imraan Mukaddam said in the same week the girl was raped, another girl was lured into the house by the same group of boys, who tried to rape her.
Prior to these incidents, the CPF received many reports about shenanigans taking place at the house. Those occupying it are not the legal owners.
“The property is one of the abandoned houses in Elsies River. It appears that it belongs to a couple that have since died before its current occupants took over. Those people are not paying rent or anything like that.
“There are many houses around the area that have been hijacked by gangsters. Those houses are either owned by elderly people, alive or dead, and in most cases their off-spring are drug addicts,” Mukaddam said.
He said the CPF was dealing with all the problematic properties and was planning to engage with all parties involved, including the City.
After the engagement with the residents on Wednesday, and considering the reports, the CPF has declared it a crime hot spot. In future, police will patrol the area.
The mother of the 12-year-old, who can’t be named for the safety of her child, said she participated in the gathering on Wednesday.
“I am so overwhelmed by the support that I am getting from the community. I did not know that such a large number of community members will be behind my family through all this. We want the occupants of that house out of this area, and I want justice for my daughter. I am not going to leave the situation as it is; they must all pay for what they did to her.”
Councillor Christopher Jordaan said he had received several complaints about loud music and gangsters hanging around the house, and the matter was dealt with immediately.
After the rape incident, neighbourhood watch with the help of police and law enforcement, patrolled around the house in the early hours and the evening.