{"id":824287,"date":"2025-05-20T09:09:03","date_gmt":"2025-05-20T07:09:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/?p=824287"},"modified":"2025-05-21T13:21:16","modified_gmt":"2025-05-21T11:21:16","slug":"criminals-targeting-shopping-malls-in-south-africa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/lifestyle\/824287\/criminals-targeting-shopping-malls-in-south-africa\/","title":{"rendered":"Criminals targeting shopping malls in South Africa"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

South Africans who enjoy visiting shopping malls are being warned that criminals are increasingly targeting vehicles parked at these centres. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Private security companies and the South African Police Service (SAPS) have raised the alarm over a rise in car thefts involving remote jamming devices. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Pretoria, security firm Bull Security has reported a notable increase in these incidents, especially in the eastern parts of the city, such as Mooikloof.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Remote jamming is a method where criminals block the signal between a car owner\u2019s remote and their vehicle, preventing the car from locking. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bull Security spokesperson French Jooste explained that thieves typically wait in mall parking areas and jam the signal when the driver walks away. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This leaves the vehicle unlocked and vulnerable to theft, often without the owner even realising it. \u201cThe device used to jam the signal can be as simple as a gate remote or more advanced,\u201d said Jooste. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBecause of the signal interference, your car won’t lock, and if you don\u2019t check, you\u2019ll walk away thinking it\u2019s secure.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

He advised drivers to always manually check that their doors and boot are locked before leaving their vehicle and to never leave valuables visible inside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jooste also stressed the importance of parking in visible, busy areas, preferably those monitored by CCTV, to deter criminals. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

He added that if drivers notice issues locking their vehicles, they should immediately report them to on-site security.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last year, a member of parliament (MP) was a victim of this uptick in vehicle thefts from shopping malls.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A car worth R4 million belonging to the MP was stolen from a prominent mall in Gauteng. Fortunately, the vehicle was recovered outside Polokwane before it could be smuggled into Zimbabwe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Insurance companies and the SAPS have both said they are aware of the targeting of high-value vehicles in mall parking lots.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to SAPS, organised syndicates are heavily involved in these crimes, which include both theft and hijacking. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Their latest statistics show that over 7,700 vehicle thefts and more than 4,800 hijackings occurred in the last three months of 2024\u2014an average of 140 incidents per day. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While not all occur at shopping malls, hotspots include larger urban areas in Gauteng, the Western Cape, and KwaZulu-Natal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tracker\u2019s Chief Operating Officer, Duma Ngcobo, confirmed that malls remain key hotspots for vehicle crimes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

He highlighted that hijackings peak on Fridays between 15:00 and 22:00, while car thefts are most common on Saturdays from 11:00 to 15:00.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What happens to South African cars hijacked or stolen<\/h2>\n\n\n
\n
\"\"<\/a>
Stolen Toyota Corolla Cross vehicle intercepted by authorities along the Limpopo river, 15 May 2025. <\/em>
<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Syndicates in Botswana, Mozambique, Namibia, Zimbabwe, and local chop shops are the primary consumers of stolen vehicles from South Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to experts like security firm Fidelity Group and Cartrack, the cars are either dismantled for parts or smuggled into neighbouring countries. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The demand is driven by economic hardship, both locally and abroad, where the high cost of original vehicle parts makes cheaper, often illicit, alternatives more attractive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Popular models like the Toyota Hilux, Fortuner, Corolla Cross, and RAV4 are frequent targets, due to their durable engines and ability to handle rough terrain. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As recent as Thuesday 15 May, Members of Provincial Anti-Smuggling Team in Limpopo intercepted a stolem vehilce from South Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The team noted that it intercepted a suspected stolen white Toyota Corolla Cross vehicle intended to be smuggled to neighbouring Zimbabwe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fidelity Services Group noted that about 30% of hijacked vehicles are smuggled across the country\u2019s borders and sold at lower prices in poorer nations, where new cars are unaffordable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According  to Cartrack, the popular smuggling routes used by criminals include: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  • Through Sikwane in North West for Botswana, <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Various points in KwaZulu-Natal and Mpumalanga for Mozambique, and <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Vioolsdrift in the Northern Cape for Namibia, and across the Limpopo River\u2014sometimes by donkey cart\u2014for Zimbabwe. <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    In one extreme case, syndicates in northern KZN built makeshift steel bridges to move stolen vehicles over barriers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Once across the border, vehicles are fitted with fake plates and often rerouted through Zambia, a major trafficking hub thanks to its central location and shared borders with eight other countries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    In response, South African authorities have stepped up efforts to curb smuggling. In KZN, a long-delayed 25-kilometre concrete barrier along the Mozambique border began construction in phases. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    As of late 2024, just over 7 kilometres of the first section had been completed. Even this partial completion has reduced vehicle smuggling, with monthly cross-border thefts dropping noticeably. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Shoppers in South Africa are being cautioned that criminals are increasingly targeting vehicles parked at shopping malls.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":92,"featured_media":824423,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9876],"tags":[12867,6277,853,17501],"class_list":["post-824287","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lifestyle","tag-fidelity-adt","tag-shopping-mall","tag-south-africa","tag-the-south-african-police-service-saps"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/824287","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/92"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=824287"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/824287\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":825024,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/824287\/revisions\/825024"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/824423"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=824287"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=824287"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=824287"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}