It’s been a year of success for Umbilo SAPS station commander, Colonel Teddy Munusamy, who joined the station in November 2020, taking over the reigns from Colonel John Romer, who took his retirement after many years in the force.
Col Munusamy said his time at Umbilo SAPS has not been smooth sailing as the area faced many challenges, but with the help of the Community Policing Forum (CPF) chaired by Heather Rorick, and his experience in the force, he was able to pull through.
Col Munusamy was previously stationed in Chatsworth, having served most of his career with the Durban Flying Squad. “I am now 40 years in the force and it’s a great honour,” he added.
As the station commander, Col Munusamy is responsible for 156 staff at the station, servicing three sectors which make up his jurisdiction. “Sector one of Umbilo is the only functional sector with a very active CPF. The CPF works very closely with the members and myself. They are very responsible when it comes to representing the community and are very aligned to the president’s call for CPFs and community safety forums to work closely with the SAPS. They understand that they are a legal body and should work towards the efforts of enforcing laws in the community,” said Col Munusamy.
“Currently, Sector 2 and 3 do not have a CPF body. We are now looking at holding elections to have bodies in both these sectors as most of the challenges are coming from those areas. Sector 2 runs from McDonald’s Road all the way up to Francois Road and Sector 3 from Francois Road all the way to Edwin Swales. “These sectors are really problematic as they are the entry points of criminal activity. These areas have a lot of businesses and are on the boarders of other communities such as Mayville, Cato Manor, Isipingo etc. We have criminals entering Umbilo from these points for various reasons as the area has a need for movement, with the harbour just below us and student accommodation as well,” he explained.
He said community members may expect him to perform miracles, however, he cannot do that without their help. Since he started, Col Munusamy said the station has successfully made a total of 1 863 arrests in the last financial year. “I have had people asking what are the 156 staff at Umbilo SAPS doing, if they are failing to fight crime? My response is simple, out of the 156 staff, 31 of them are detectives, 59 are Vispol supporters or administrative staff, 38 of them are shift workers and 20 of them are with crime prevention,” said Col Munusamy.
He said the most common crimes in the area are theft out of motor vehicles, business break-ins, house robberies and fraud. “Some of the challenges which keep the police busy include noise levels at student accommodations, prostitution and flats which were previously run by council and have been shifted to ownership schemes. These flats are used by the poorest of the poor and because of socio-economic conditions, they are now one of the major causes of crime in the area and keep the members up,” added Col Munusamy. He said he will enforce new relations with the community and sub-sector forums in an effort to curb the crime in Umbilo, making the area safer for all who live in it. “There is a contact board with all the necessary numbers, including my cell number, the Vispol’s number and the head of detectives for those who may need to communicate with us at any needed time. We remain fully accountable to the public,” he added.
To contact the Station Commander Colonel T Munusamy call 082-448-7589; Vispol Commander Lieutenant Colonel S Perumal on 082-469-6091 and the Branch Commander Lieutenant Colonel RBW Xaba on 072-370-2306 or contact Crime Stop on 0860-10111.
To email any queries or inquiries send an email to umbilo.saps@saps.gov.za
