Blue Security has warned employers and domestic staff to be vigilant following a Durban North mugging at the weekend.
Blue Security North Tactical ambassador Darrel Moodley said a domestic worker was robbed while she was walking along Grosvenor Crescent at around 7.12pm on Saturday.
“The domestic worker reported that a white vehicle stopped next to her while she was walking along the road and a suspect jumped out of the vehicle and held her up at gunpoint,” Moodley said. “The suspect robbed her of her handbag, a large sum of cash, her cellphone, and bank cards and fled the scene. No injuries were reported,” he said. Moodley said the domestic worker was traumatised but did not require crisis care following the incident. Greenwood Park SAPS attended the scene of the crime.
Moodley advised employers to caution their domestic staff to be vigilant when walking to and from work and not to carry large sums of cash and other valuables. He advised home owners to encourage staff to accept payment via electronic banking to avoid the need to carry cash.
“As we approach the festive season we urge home owners to their brief domestic staff on security measures, not only for their own personal safety when travelling to work, but also to ensure that they are security conscious when working in your home,” Moodley said.
“It’s important to remind domestic staff to ensure that security gates are kept locked during the day and to ensure that only bonafide contractors are allowed onto the premises.”
Moodley advised home owners to caution domestic staff as a general rule to not to allow anyone onto the property without first checking with them whether contractors were expected on the premises. “Remind your staff to always verify the identity of anyone claiming to be municipal meter readers before opening up, however, it’s even safer to get into the habit of sending your meter reading directly to the municpality via SMS or email,” he said.
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