On the high end of crime scale

THERE are two main reasons why I choose to live in a condo rather than stay in a landed property.

The first is that I can’t afford a house, at least not one that’s close to my office in Section 16, Petaling Jaya. But the second, more compelling reason, is that I feel a lot more secure in an apartment.

Sure, staying in a condo isn’t burglar-proof and there have been cases where apartments are robbed, but statistically, these are few and far between compared to landed properties. The recent spate of crime, in some cases violent, that has residents of the Jalan Gasing area living in fear, made me once again reflect on my choice of accommodation.

To recap, over the last month or so, there have been a number of reported break-ins (eight by my count) in the Jalan Gasing area. The police believe these robberies were committed by a five-man group armed with parangs.

A close friend of mine was a victim of the group last month. The robbers broke in at about 8pm when the family was about to have dinner. While an accomplice stood guard over the family, the rest of the gang ransacked the house.

“I pleaded with them not to harm my family and to take whatever they wanted,” my friend related, adding that his family was still traumatised.

A week after this incident, a young lady and her brother were robbed in the same area. This time, the robbers struck at 8am, just as they were leaving for work. The brother was beaten up while the young lady was forced into one of the rooms and raped.

Last week, a doctor and his family fell victims to the same modus operandi. The group, wearing ski masks, jumped over the victim’s walled compound. They started smashing up things, roughed up the family and made away with whatever items they could lay their hands on. An accomplice remained in a getaway car throughout the robbery.

“I believe this gang has been casing victims’ homes for weeks before striking. They have the same MO in almost all the cases,” my friend told me.

He is now part of a residents’ initiative in Jalan Gasing to “take back their neighbourhood” from criminals.

He told me that the gang usually struck either around 8am or 8pm.

“They may be hardcore criminals, but they have done their homework. When we were robbed, they took only about 10 minutes to clean us out.

“They used intimidating tactics and took away our mobile phones. They were also smart enough to take my CCTV recordings,” he said.

I find it ironic that an affluent area known for its backdrop of pristine jungle and lovely bungalow houses is now under siege in a span of barely a few weeks. This area boasts a large number of educated, influential Malaysians. Many civil servants and even politicians live in this area. Fingers are pointing everywhere but the residents themselves have started to band together.

“We have submitted a proposal to the Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) to install CCTVs, barriers along residential roads and guardhouses. We are confident that the council will approve our application,” my friend told me, adding that 90% of the residents were supportive of the idea.

What baffles me is that an area that used to be known for its extremely low crime rate is suddenly on the high end of the scale. Swaths of residential Petaling Jaya are now gated and guarded areas, but Jalan Gasing had always seemed apart.

Even four years ago, when the idea to install barriers on residential roads was mooted, only 30% of Section Five residents were in favour.

“I think it’s inevitable that barriers will gradually be installed in pockets of Jalan Gasing. Of course, this will only be applicable to residential roads and not the public roads.

“This will alleviate the workload of the police because they can concentrate on patrolling the public roads while MBPJ can link our CCTVs to their centralised monitoring system. It’s a win-win situation,” my friend told me.

I believe that this spate of robberies in a high-profile neighbourhood like Jalan Gasing has highlighted the need for greater cooperation between the residents, the police and the local authorities. While there is a need for residents and neighbours to be more vigilant, the authorities must also work harder to regain public confidence in law and order.

So, would I trade living in an apartment for a house, even if I were offered a property at half the value of my apartment?

Not anytime soon. Not until our neighbourhoods become a safer place.

The writer believes that residents need to petition their local politicians, stand up as a collective group and not allow criminals to take away their peace of mind.