Previously ~ a few years ago ~ Muldersdrift and surrounds held the dubious record as the centre for farm attacks and murders in Gauteng, as criminal elements turned the smallholdings in the region into a veritable battleground.
With the advent of the Covid-19 lockdown, however, the focus seems to have shifted, with the plots near Onderstepoort north of Pretoria having become the target of intensified attacks in recent weeks.
In one 24-hour period no fewer than seven cases have been registered at the Pretoria North police station involving attacks on plots within a radius of a few kilometres.
The cases involve attempted murder, armed robbery and attempted robbery. In one case two victims sustained head injuries, while in another an 18-year-old was shot in the neck.
Responding to the attacks in the Onderstepoort area the Democratic Alliance in Gauteng called upon the ANC provincial government to take the issue of crime in rural areas more seriously, saying, “It is high time that the Gauteng MEC for Community Safety, Faith Mazibuko urgently intervenes and implements measures to ensure that our rural communities are kept safe.”