The City of Cape Town is investigating how a municipal radio landed in the hands of an individual who tried to sell it to a neighbourhood watch patroller in Kraaifontein yesterday (30 January).
According to a source, the neighbourhood watch member from Kraaifontein reported the incident to the City’s safety and security department after the alleged suspect tried to sell the radio.
The source says the watch member managed to recover the radio but the suspect fled.
Richard Bosman, executive director for safety and security, confirmed the incident and says the City collected the radio on Monday night.
He says while the incident will be investigated, the use of radios is not limited to the City’s enforcement services. “Other City staff also use these types of radios, such as water and sanitation management department workers and electricity generation and distribution staff.”
Asked what the dangers are of a member of the public having access to the information broadcast on radios such as these, Bosman says the radios are used for communication between staff members for operational purposes.
“The risk would really be dependent on which departments are involved and the nature of the communications,” he concludes.
