OVERVIEW
Internally, crime in Harare decreased by 18% however violent crimes continue to be reported in the evenings – In Harare West, churches and schools remained vulnerable with serious injuries and a fatality reported as robbers attacked private security guards and the police. In an unrelated incident, gunfire was exchanged during an armed robbery in Stapleford after 12 intruders broke into a manufacturing premise resulting in the retreat of the intruders.
As the security sector continues to fight the increase in crime, major arrests were reported in the past month with Safeguard arresting three male suspects and recovering a burglary paraphernalia including a detonator, pliers, a claw hammer and screw drivers in Workington. Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) arrested two-armed robbery suspects and fatally shooting four others in Warren Park.
Money continues to be targeted at businesses, schools and churches. Fuel was targeted from parked vehicles at both residential and industrial sites, highlighting the increased vulnerability of vehicles. Vehicle thefts continue to be reported in Harare (and Bulawayo).
The theft and storage of petrol remain a hazard with reports of fuel dealers purchasing fuel across borders for resale locally. In Mount Darwin, two children died after a residence they were in exploded. It is believed petrol and gas were being stored on site. In an unrelated incident, a commuter omnibus transporting passengers and explosives caught fire resulting in the death of 18 people.
The malaria outbreak remains a cause for concern in Zimbabwe, particularly Mashonaland West.
OUTLOOK
The risk of crime remains high as winter approaches and schools reopen. Internal trends over the past three years indicate that crime often increases between April/May, peaks in June and starts decreasing in July with non-violent crimes as the most reported as intruders take advantage of decreased alertness and potentially, increased load-shedding. Residents are urged to be vigilant given the level of violence reported during robberies in the past two months as intruders have demonstrated that they are not hesitant to cause injury.
As schools reopen, demand for fuel will increase and the uncertainty of the availability and pricing of fuel may contribute to increased social pressures. As a result, the theft of fuel remains a cause of concern and the sale of fuel may increase on the parallel market.
With loadshedding, critical infrastructure such as transformers and cellphone towers are likely to be increasingly targeted for fuel, cables and generator batteries.
As businesses implement various cost containment measures to buffer the increase in cost of operations, attention should also monitor internal theft under the guise of “low value” losses and even breakages/damages (both at factories and aboard haulage trucks) as these often result in increased costs in the long term.
ADVISORY
General Advisory
- REMAIN AWARE TO THE RISKS AND REPORT UNUSUAL ACTIVITY EARLY.
- Avoid keeping or working with excessive amounts of money on site.
- Keep your panic button and our control room contact details at hand.
- As winter approaches, ensure that your premise has adequate lighting and smooth changeover to
backup power supply, so all critical systems are uninterrupted during loadshedding.
- Ensure all systems have a separate backup power so their functionality is not affected in the event that the power is tampered with.
- Ensure your property is well-lit for improved visibility and that your perimeter is secured with a radio linked electric fence for prompt intruder detection.
- Xpanda gates and screens are also recommended in buildings as these delay intruders if they access the building.
Residential
- Avoid opening doors and gates late at night – if you must always verify who you are opening for as they may be under duress.
- Ensure your perimeter is well-lit so you can see the activity outside in the event of a noise or an alarm
activation.
- Park your vehicle in a secure and well-lit area to avoid theft from vehicles. Equip your vehicle with an
alarm for prompt notification if the vehicle is tampered with.
Schools, Industrial and Manufacturing
- To curb the risk of theft from vehicles, review your parking lot setup:
- Install bullet 4 mega pixel vary focal length cameras and ensure that they focus on the entrance/exit so license plates and drivers can be accurately captured.
- Closed gates and speed humps have proven useful in deterring criminals who often want to speed off after stealing from a vehicle.
- Long distance truckers are advised to be vigilant when driving at night as the nights will be darker, colder and the risk of getting targeting on and off the road and accidents increase during this period.
- Conduct fire and armed robbery/invasion drills with staff due to the risk of incidents.
- Use your cameras to patrol after hours as an additional layer – this is a simple connection to Safeguard AI and allows early alerts to our centre of the movement of people and vehicles.
- Ensure all property, cash and goods are insured and be aware that a single guard on a property is not sufficient for protection. You must have an alarm and a way for them to call for help if they observe a concern.
- To reduce repeat incidents, promptly improve security measures once risk is identified and ensure both successful and attempted incidents are reported to us with full information for a
comprehensive risk analysis and accurate security advisory.
A more detailed breakdown is below.
If you would like to discuss your options for security, or find out more about crime in your area, please contact us at info@safeguard.co.zw or analyst5@safeguard.co.zw respectively. You can also call Safeguard on +263 242 751395-9 the Safeguard extension 1092/1009 for assistance)- or speak to your local Safeguard manager for advice on site. Please see more information relating to crime statistics below.
Thank you for using Safeguard.
The Safeguard Team
1. CRIME INCIDENT ANALYSIS
The above visuals depict the annual internal crime (first visual), Harare quarterly crime (second visual) and crime incidents by establishment in Harare (third
visual).
Key Risk Trends and Patterns
- Robberies were committed between 0000hours and 0200hours by an average group of three to five intruders mostly armed with iron bars, firearms, claw bars and in some instances, angle grinders and explosives.
- Non-violent crimes were committed by one to three intruders approximately between 0100hours and 0200hours.
- Criminals targeted unattended vehicles and vehicle owners who lease out their vehicles for public
transportation services. These vehicles are reportedly then used in various activities including criminal activity in other suburbs and provinces.
High Risk Areas - harare
*A green circle with a numerical figure indicates the incident count for that area whilst a blue pin indicates an
incident in an isolated area.
- For the past two months, Harare West has been prone to violent crimes with another security guard fatality and injuries reported in the past month. With increased police deployments in the area, there
is a possibility that some shots may be fired in these areas as security services respond to criminal activity. However, shootouts are not limited to Harare West as police conduct continuous surveillance on armed robbery suspects and these often span across the city and various provinces.
- Break ins and thefts also increased in Chisipite and Southerton.
2. TRAVEL, HEALTH AND SAFETY ALERTS
The above map highlights the travel, health and safety alerts for the past month.
- According to a report by the Masvingo Mirror, the Masvingo-Mutare highway stretch outside Mutimurefu Prison has been identified as a road traffic accident hotspot with one fatality and
several injuries reported in an accident reported in the past month.
- The Environmental Management Agency (EMA) declared a major environmental hazard after a diesel truck overturned and spilled diesel into Mwenje River in Mazowe, Mashonaland Central.
- Three reports of fires were reported in Harare (2) and Mashonaland Central (1). In Mashonaland Central, two children died after a house they were in caught fire. It is suspected that the residents were storing petrol and gas in the residence. Individuals are therefore urged to avoid unsafe
storage of gas and petrol on site as this increases the risk of a fire hazard.
Get the latest Crime Report in your inbox: simply complete the form below:
