The high walls and security fences in upmarket suburbs provide safety for their occupants. They also hide a murky underworld of criminal activity and illegal operations, and suspicions of human trafficking.
In the upmarket Ferndale and Bryanston suburbs, where homes sell for upwards of R5 million, City of Johannesburg (CoJ) officials have raided properties that were either hijacked of operating illegally in the past few weeks, where the hijackers or dodgy owners were either renting out accommodation, or running illegal brothels.
There are at least 25 hijacked properties in Ferndale alone, says ward councillor Emi Koekemoer (DA). "Ferndale has become a crime hotspot, and the illegal occupation of these properties is a huge contributing factor," said Koekemoer.
On Wednesday, a phalanx of City officials including JMPD, City Power, Johannesburg Water, Urban Planning and Social Services, descended on two properties in Ferndale.
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Both properties had been functioning as brothels. City officials said one property on Vine Street had an online booking system in operation. At this property, and one on West Avenue and both owned by the same person, police found young women and their "clients".
The Vine Street property has outstanding municipal debt of R22 million.
On the West Avenue property officials found illegal buildings, evidence of tampering with the water infrastructure to the house, and non-payment of City fines.
Earlier this month City manager Dr Floyd Brink led councillors on a raid at a property on Grosvenor Road in Bryanston. This was the third time that the property had been raided by City officials since late last year.
The R5.1 million property had been illegally occupied, and Wendy houses were built to house more than 70 people. It is estimated the "landlord" collected in excess of R140 000 per month in rental from these tenants.
Police arrested the alleged mastermind, Lawrence Ramalwa, and recovered a licensed firearm, ammunition, and two magazines during the raid. Ramalwa is out on R1000.00 bail while investigations continue.
Brink said there were 17 more properties, in Bryanston alone, currently under investigation for "similar infringements". He promised "blitzes" on these properties in the coming months.
Ferndale's hidden underworld
In Ferndale, hijacked houses are concentrated along the Long, St James, and West streets corridor. On Long Avenue a property bought by the Gauteng provincial government stands empty and derelict while the province pays R1 million for security.
On Royal Avenue, Koekemoer pointed to a double-storey mansion with a pool and tennis court which has both water and electricity illegally connected. The electrified fencing had been torn down. Koekemoer said the top storey had collapsed after a fire had ravaged the property.
On Long Street, the backyard of another hijacked property was filled with rubbish and old cars. Plastic crates were piled next to a wooden structure. They have reported three robberies there since the property was taken over. Outside, waste pickers sort through mountains of plastic.
"This area has become a cesspool of illegal activity. While it looks like a well-off suburb, we have at least 25 houses that have been hijacked. My concern is that while we keep reporting this, nothing happens," said Koekemoer.
In Bryanston, a short distance from a house said to be that of an ANC leader is another hijacked property. Koekemoer approached it with caution as the residents of the house next door were brutally attacked by people who had gained entry to their property from the hijacked house.
Councillor Bea Campbell-Cloete, designated PR councillor for Ward 102, said there were about 15 hijacked properties in Blairgowrie alone, while another 25 properties were in other parts of the same ward.
A municipal blitz on problematic properties is coming
Regional director for regions A and E, Makgafela Thaba, said the City has identified 10 problematic properties in each of the seven regions of the city and will be conducting operations at each over the next few weeks.
"There will be a massive upscaling of activities. During our last few raids, we have picked up the tricks that the owners/hijackers of these houses employ, and we are ready for them.
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"Problematic properties in suburban areas are a growing trend," he said.
Thaba said each of the problematic houses owed the City in excess of R1.5 million in outstanding fees. "Not only is the City losing out on revenue, the illegal water and electricity connections and illegal buildings erected, put pressure on already strained municipal services," he said.
Thaba added that the properties were not only draining revenue from the City but also created an unsafe environment.
Koekemoer, who attended both raids in her suburb, said while she was deeply grateful for the raids, she was disappointed that intervention had only come after years of reporting the issue.
"While I understand that issues of this nature need to sometimes follow an overcomplicated process for the sake of being legally compliant, I'm left questioning how a municipal bill is allowed to run up so high? There needs to be a level of consequence management when entities fail to cut off non-paying properties."
