Marthina Mutanga
FOLLOWING a few incidents of people being attacked while withdrawing money at Automatic Teller Machines (ATMs), especially at night, the police has cautioned members of the public to exercise extra care.
Police spokesperson, Deputy Commissioner Kauna Shikwambi, said while targets of thieves are not to blame, it was important that the public protected itself.
“Nowadays one cannot trust anyone and history has taught us that even security guards are and can be an accomplice to many criminal activities,” she said.
Deputy Commissioner Shikwambi was referring to a specific case in which a woman was attacked by various men while withdrawing money at an ATM while the security guard stood by and watched. At least two other men recorded the incident from the safety of their vehicle and also did nothing to help the young woman.
“It’s really unfortunate that the victim went through that. Even if it was an emergency for her to withdraw money at that hour, utmost caution was to be considered. What they need to put across is deterring messages through our various media platforms so that we remind, caution and educate the nation about safety and security, which is and should be every individual’s priority,” noted Shikwambi.
She further noted that criminals often select their victims and targets, focusing on people who are unaware or unprepared.
