New fears over crime in tourist hotspot
In spite of regular assurances from the government and police, new fears about the safety of people in South Africa have been raised by a series of high-profile crimes in Cape Town over the weekend.
Although the Cape Town CBD and the V&A Waterfront are thought to be well covered by monitored CCTV systems, brazen robbers were able to walk away from three robberies - two in the Waterfront and one at a large ABSA bank branch in the CBD.
And in another incident, a University of Cape Town student was stabbed to death by muggers on Friday night in Observatory, a suburb close to the city.
On Saturday morning four men locked ABSA staff in a room before escaping with some of the contents of a strong-room. According to media reports, the men walked out into Adderley Street and vanished. A special police unit is investigating.
On Saturday evening a thief raided a jewellery kiosk while other shoppers watched and escaped with sunglasses and goods worth R23 000. On Sunday eight people raided a clothing store.
V&A Waterfront traders have raised concerns about the absence of security staff whenever they are needed but Waterfront management has said it is working with the police to try to identify the suspects.
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