Acsa investigating handbag theft at OR Tambo
8 February 2010, 17:45
The company that owns Johannesburg's main airport is investigating the theft of a woman's bag as she checked in, and the theft later of money from her bank account using her bank cards.
"It appears that [the] passenger's bag was taken at the entrance to the terminal building from the roadway," said Airports Company of SA (Acsa) spokesman Solomon Makgale.
The Star, a sister title to IOL, reported that Joyce Makuke's bag had been stolen at the airport. When she asked a security official to review the closed circuit television (CCTV) footage she was told it was not working. She suggested foul play because when she returned with the police they found it was working.
She alleged that money had also been withdrawn from her accounts, but she did not know how her secret access number had been obtained.
Makgale said that Acsa, in the course of its investigation, had established that the CCTV was working and had captured the theft, which had been carried out by a man in civilian clothes.
He said the company was working with the police to identify the person, and was still trying to establish who Makuke had reported the crime to. Acsa had two companies, G4 and Bosasa, as security contractors.
"It is unclear as to which guard she approached," said Makgale, adding that she had claimed that the guard's control room was empty when she went there.
"Such alleged behaviour is uncommon as our security personnel assist many passengers.
"Our CCTV control room is available on a 24-hour basis. However, after-hours the request would need to be made through the help desk at 011 921 6262 or, alternatively, contacting the security control room directly at 011 921 6655, or going directly to the Acsa information counter for assistance.
"We do not have any reports on file that indicate that the passenger made use of any one of these channels.
"What we do have on record is that the passenger was brought through the following day by the SA Police Service to conduct the review of CCTV footage after the incident had happened."
At this stage of the investigation, Acsa did not suspect foul play, he said
"This is an isolated incident. We have not received similar complaints recently. We all appreciate that crime is a serious issue in our country and our airports are no exception.
"We therefore urge passengers to exercise extra caution when using ATMs and handling cash in public areas."
Police spokesman Superintendent Vish Naidoo confirmed that the police were investigating a case of theft. - Sapa
"It appears that [the] passenger's bag was taken at the entrance to the terminal building from the roadway," said Airports Company of SA (Acsa) spokesman Solomon Makgale.
The Star, a sister title to IOL, reported that Joyce Makuke's bag had been stolen at the airport. When she asked a security official to review the closed circuit television (CCTV) footage she was told it was not working. She suggested foul play because when she returned with the police they found it was working.
She alleged that money had also been withdrawn from her accounts, but she did not know how her secret access number had been obtained.
Makgale said that Acsa, in the course of its investigation, had established that the CCTV was working and had captured the theft, which had been carried out by a man in civilian clothes.
He said the company was working with the police to identify the person, and was still trying to establish who Makuke had reported the crime to. Acsa had two companies, G4 and Bosasa, as security contractors.
"It is unclear as to which guard she approached," said Makgale, adding that she had claimed that the guard's control room was empty when she went there.
"Such alleged behaviour is uncommon as our security personnel assist many passengers.
"Our CCTV control room is available on a 24-hour basis. However, after-hours the request would need to be made through the help desk at 011 921 6262 or, alternatively, contacting the security control room directly at 011 921 6655, or going directly to the Acsa information counter for assistance.
"We do not have any reports on file that indicate that the passenger made use of any one of these channels.
"What we do have on record is that the passenger was brought through the following day by the SA Police Service to conduct the review of CCTV footage after the incident had happened."
At this stage of the investigation, Acsa did not suspect foul play, he said
"This is an isolated incident. We have not received similar complaints recently. We all appreciate that crime is a serious issue in our country and our airports are no exception.
"We therefore urge passengers to exercise extra caution when using ATMs and handling cash in public areas."
Police spokesman Superintendent Vish Naidoo confirmed that the police were investigating a case of theft. - Sapa
Pretoria
