Thieves steal from pot plants to water taps

Sharlien Tjambari

Incidents of theft from residential premises are on the increase at the coastal towns. In Swakopmund lately, pot plant theft has escalated. The latest victim is the Wild Flower Garten in the holiday town’s Sam Nujoma Avenue.

It has never been a problem, but lately we have people at night who enter the premises and steal our plants. This started in December already, but it is now escalating, reported a person involved with the nursery. Adding, the thief or thieves would steal the plants and return when the smaller plants grew again, evidence this the work of only a small group of people.
In Walvis Bay there is also a new trend, albeit an expensive and highly frustrated one. A group of people are targeting residences now with older generation water taps and main water taps. No less than five properties were targeted during the last days of March alone where main taps and taps around the house are simply removed. Water are left to stream from the open pipes, leading to a messy and very expensive affair.
Neither unemployment, nor poverty or any other of the usual excuses for theft can hold to this one. You simply don’t do this to another person and you cannot call this petty theft”, one of the victims of the tap theft said.
Caption. Plant which was vandalised on Tuesday evening at Swakopmund.