Rising Crime In Taman Tun Dr Ismail

Residents of Taman Tun Dr Ismail can't wait for a police headquarters to be set up in the area by the end of the year. The police HQ will be known as IPD Kiara Mas.

Read it HERE.

Meanwhile, many residents are pretty distressed. So worried over their safety and the security of their homes because of a (recent) spate of crimes in the area.

I need to point out that residents have (collectively) employed security guards who are stationed in designated areas in TTDI. You'd think that prospective perpetrators are deterred. Apparently, not.

On Tuesday (Nov 2), a resident reported to the police about seeing a grey van along Jalan Athinahapan in the morning.
She said that she rushed home from running an errand upon being alerted by her neighbour about a suspicious-looking grey van "lurking" in front of her house.
She believed that it was the same van that she had earlier seen. Her neighbour, who was viewing the CCTV, was a little suspicious of the vehicle and its occupants, and called her.
When she arrived near her house, the van made a quick "exit".

She trailed the van until Medan Athinahapan 2. What she noticed was the van going around the neighbourhood -- as though the driver was "looking" for the perfect target.
She reported the matter to the police.
The police have advised residents to quickly call them in cases like this.

The telephone number of Balai Polis Taman Tun Dr Ismail is 77286222. You have to try to remember the plate number, type of car, the colour of the car, the number of people in the car and a description (if you can) of them

Check out the list from the residents' association:

28 Oct - BMW car smashed at Jalan Burhanuddin Helmi 2

28 Oct - attempted robbery at Jalan Datuk Sulaiman 4 (6.40am)

28 Oct - very suspicious Men in Black Toyota Camry at Jalan Datuk Sulaiman 1 (3pm)

28 Oct - House break in at Lorong Rahim Kajai 4 - breakin (1pm)

27 Oct - Teacher attacked at TTDI Community Hall (3pm)

27 Oct - Snatch theft at Jalan Burhanuddin Helmi

27 Oct - Boy's iPhone snatched at Jalan Athinahapan 1

19 Oct - House break in at Jalan Leong Yew Koh - (early morning)

17 Oct - Attempted house break in at Jalan Leong Yew Koh (around 2pm)

14 Oct - Car stolen at Jalan Leong Yew Koh

7 Oct - House Break in - Jalan Athinahapan 2 (afternoon)

Don't you think the number (of incidents) and the frequency are alarming?
These are just in October. There were house break-ins last year and early this year as well.

As a long-time resident of TTDI (since 1985), I am so concerned. My own house was broken into sometime in 1998 while I was away on holiday with my family.
My very alert neighbour spotted someone lurking around the front of my house and then trying to get into the front yard through the rubbish bin compartment. He quickly called the police who came fast enough to catch the culprit, along with some things from my house.
(My house was undergoing minor renovation. Perhaps, the workmen forgot to bolt the metal door of the compartment from the front yard side)

Over the years, there have been similar cases in the area. Police have been swift in their response. Residents, on their part have been vigilant and taken extra precautions and measures by installing security features such as home alarm systems, and, as I have mentioned, (since two years ago) hired the services of security guards on a collective basis.

But the recent cases of break-ins, burglary and snatch thefts have been too frequent. Therefore alarming. And they occur in the desolateness of the morning, or afternoon when most of the house owners/occupants are out. Parents at work and kids at school.
Apparently, the criminals check out the houses first before doing a hit to make sure no one's at home. They ring the doorbells long enough to know if anyone is at home. If there is a maid, they pretend to make inquiries about house tenancy and other "innocent" matters before leaving.

Residents, over the years, have learnt to deal with these sort of things. What choice do they have?

Which neighbourhood, really, is safe? It doesn't matter whether you live in upscale neighbourhoods like Bukit Tunku or your average taman such-and-such. Criminals rob people, places, either randomly or through thorough assessment of their targets.

That said, it does not mean that residents are resigned to all this. Or that they have accepted the rising cases of house break-ins and snatch thefts, daylight robberies as as part and parcel of life.
Yes, we have learnt to live with it because it is beyond us to keep away thieves and robbers, despite having installed home security features, employed security guards, erected security fences and so forth.

What we hope for is more POLICE PRESENCE because we feel that a very visible police presence will deter thieves and robbers.
This is perhaps lacking or absent in TTDI, although I have seen a police mobile unit on Sundays near the park -- Taman Lembah Kiara.
That's just it. The police mobile unit should also be seen in different areas on different days, in those quite hours of the afternoon....

Ask any resident in TTDI and he or she will readily tell you that regular patrolling (police patrol cars) is sorely needed.

So, let's hope the police will do just that!

(I hear that the crime rate -- used to be notoriously high - in SS2, Petaling Jaya, has dipped because the police have been patrolling regularly....)