Conmen raid city homes

Jul 17, 2009

THE Police have advised the public to take precautions against the resurgence of urban con men who visit homes to rob unsuspecting caretakers. Last week, two men disguised to be UMEME workers parked their car at a house in Luzira.

By Conan Businge   

THE Police have advised the public to take precautions against the resurgence of urban con men who visit homes to rob unsuspecting caretakers. Last week, two men disguised to be UMEME workers parked their car at a house in Luzira.

The owners had left for work and the maid was alone with a child. They asked her to direct them to the electricity meter box and as one of the men went towards the box, the other entered the house and grabbed the baby.

He then threatened to harm him, if the maid made an alarm. His colleague entered the house, picked a television set, DVD and radio from the sitting room, put them in the car and the two sped off after throwing the baby down. The maid’s alarm was too late.

In Kyengera, another Kampala suburb, two ladies came with a loaded suitcase and pretended they were sisters to the woman of the house. After fake calls to the woman of the house, they sent the maid to buy them soda. When the maid returned, the ‘guests’ were gone and so were the music system, TV, flat iron and microwave. They left their ‘loaded suitcase’ but when it was forced open, they found only metallic scrap.

In another incident in Mubende, a girl received a drink from her boyfriend, but the soda had been laced with narcotics. She was later robbed and stripped naked by thugs.

There is also the case where thugs went to a Barclay’s officer’s home and told the maid that her boss had sent them for some property. When she was hesitant, they duped her by putting her on phone to talk to her ‘boss’. A woman instructed her to give the men the property and she agreed.

The Police say these conmen have become wiser and now trick their way into homes during work hours. They are dressed as respectable people, often attack in the afternoon when adults are at work and the maids or children are left in charge. Sources in the Police say such complaints are increasing, although they have not come up with statistics yet.

Police records show that about 12,236 cases of break-ins were reported and investigated last year, compared to 8,795 cases in 2007. The most common categories of break-ins were burglaries (6,825 cases), house break-ins (2,898), shop break-ins (1,984) and office break-ins (529).

The head of the Kampala city traders association, Issa Ssekito, says he has received several reports from his traders about conmen robbing their homes in the afternoon.  “It is a growing vice which we have to fight. We are keeping quiet about it, but it will soon grow,” he says.

Police records, according to the Kampala Metropolitan CID chief Paul Kato, do not specifically show homes which have fallen prey to these conmen. “The information is not broken down to this level and we can hardly tell these kinds of crime. They are just categorised under other crimes,” Kato explains.
The Police say it is important to report strange people in their compounds, to local councillors or Police.
Fortunately unlike in the past when armed robbery was at its peak, thieves now use tricks to cheat and steal people. Armed robbery was quelled when the Government came up with an emergency security unit to curb the sweeping wave of crime in the country.
Formed in 2002, Operation Wembley that was later renamed the Violent Crime Crack Unit (VCCU), now the Rapid Response Unit (RRU), helped reduce on robbery incidents countrywide.

Although it was widely criticised by human rights organisations for its ‘shoot to kill’ mode of operation, it helped Ugandans get rid of the deadly criminals. 

Before the unit swung into action, the well organised racket of criminals would waylay and rob their victims on highways and in the city centre both at night and in during broad day light.
With the new wave of conmen, the Police is suggesting different solution.

The head of the Police Protection Unit, Emilian Kayima, says it is everybody’s responsibility in the community to stamp out such crimes. “There should be vigilance. Police also needs to take up a campaign on vigilance. We (police) at times mount media campaigns to raise public awareness.”

“The laxity on the part of the public makes all of us vulnerable. Know who you leave at home, have alert maids and keep an open eye,” he warns.

House help should be told not to allow anybody in the house without specific instructions from the mobile phone number of the owners of the home. Even at the risk of being rude, it helps when everybody is vigilant.

He adds that the Police also need to visit the local councils and brief them on how they can advise their people to boost their security.

Tips for your safety
Before you let in anyone at home, think!
  • People who come claiming to be employees of utility companies like water or electricity should have identification.

  • Avoid keeping large amounts of money in your home.

  • If a bogus caller manages to enter the home, just run, leave them there and call for help. Inform the police or LCs immediately.

  • If you are expecting someone home, let the house help know. Company employees need to arrange with home owners before they send employees to inspect inside the homes.

  • Be bold enough to ask and examine the strange visitor’s identity card.

  • Make sure your front and back doors are locked at all times.

  • Look for logos on vehicles and clothing of the visitors.

  • Use your door chain while checking the caller’s identity. Speak to them through a gate door.

  • Patrons of bars, nightclubs and other entertainment centres should never leave their drink or food unattended.

  • Do not accept food or drink offered from a stranger, even if the stranger is a child, because such food may contain narcotics used to incapacitate you and facilitate a robbery or sexual assault.

  • Destroy any documents like banks statements, utility bills, cheque books stubs debit or credit card transaction receipts, even envelopes or a letterhead showing your name, address or other details.

  • Keep your bedrooms which contain valuables locked

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