DataDot

How to combat property crime

Currently there are two popular approaches when people discuss reducing property crime: The first is to catch and prosecute criminals and the second is to address the sociological issues such as poverty and unemployment, which possibly contribute to crime. Almost 75% of all property crime is commercially motivated which means people are stealing property to resell it at a profit. Much of the violence we see related to crime in South Africa is also committed at the same time.

Crime statistics for Gauteng over the last couple of years have shown a substantial increase in business robberies, house robberies and hijackings. All of these crimes and many others are commercially motivated and it is perhaps time to implement strategies that directly address the economic aspect of crime. The Free Market Foundation makes the point that "Catching criminals is difficult and dangerous; destroying their market is easy and safe."

Many studies done in the US in the 70's and 80's suggested that increasing manpower and resources actually had very little impact on whether crimes would be solved. So although it is obviously crucial to retain conventional policing and security approaches, it is also now necessary to think more laterally to come up with more effective and cost-effective ways to combat crime.

The UK has experimented, adopted and formalised crime reduction strategies. These strategies look at reducing the opportunities to commit crime (through improved surveillance & security) and reducing stolen goods markets. Various studies have been conducted which show the success of this approach. They also show that there is a direct relationship between knowing where to get rid of stolen goods and committing the crime in the first place.

The Australian Institute of criminology has identified a number of factors which affect a criminal's willingness to commit crime. 1) Identifying hot products so that consumers can make a choice of which product to buy 2) Marking of property by owners or manufacturers eg. Data dot systems and 3) Improving and enforcing laws relating to stolen goods trading and public education, together with a reward system for informers.

It is evident too that the more stolen goods are confiscated and the more difficult it is to get rid of stolen goods, the less likely it is that crime will be committed. The DA in Gauteng believes that the Gauteng Department of Community Safety should be running a pilot project with the SAPS in order to ascertain whether focusing on the stolen goods market can make a real difference to crime in the province.

The DA in Cape Town has, to some degree, used a market reduction approach in its formation of a group of law enforcement officers called the Copperheads who specifically target the theft and resale of metals like copper cable and manhole covers. This unit has been enormously successful in reducing the number of opportunities for thieves to get rid of their stolen property. In order for criminals to sell stolen goods, there has to be an accessible market.

It is therefore as easy for a civilian or police members to identify dealers as it is for the criminals. In a period of 48hrs one is able to find dealers of stolen goods ranging from groceries to guns. Stolen goods are, in the main, sold to middle men ie. Pawn shops, second hand goods dealers, hawkers and Internet dealers who then resell the goods to the public.

How should a Market Reduction Strategy be implemented? Market reduction units should be established in each police region with a dedicated officer at each station. These officers should be properly trained to understand the relevant legislation ie. Second Hand Goods Act, the relevant economics ie. Law of supply and demand and lastly, the details of how and where stolen goods markets function. Conventional police training is not a necessity as there is no direct contact with the criminals. Market reduction officers would be entering the market as would-be consumers in order to identify dealers and criminals alike.

Resources must be provided to enable police to operate as consumers ie. Money to buy goods, money for rewards for information, surveillance cameras, high tech tagging equipment, direct access to a stolen goods database and a database of known dealers and criminals. Quite a complex legal exercise must then be undertaken to formulate legislation and guidelines to govern under what circumstances it would be legitimate to seize goods.

There is currently questionable implementation of the Prevention of the Organised Crime Act which deals with the Asset forfeiture unit so checks and balances will be needed to ensure that dealers do not have their goods confiscated inappropriately and illegally.

There are a number of benefits associated with the implementation of a market reduction strategy. It is safer for law enforcement officers as they are not required to directly confront criminals, it is more cost effective than conventional policing methods, violent crime will be reduced and the insurance industry will benefit as less crime will mean a reduction in policy costs and more people will be able to afford insurance.

The economic theory that supply equals demand forms the basis of Market Reduction strategies and informs the need for government to look for the best ways to limit and close down the market for stolen goods.

Kate Lorimer MPL, is DA Spokesperson for Safety & Security in Gauteng