Crimes in housing areas partly house owners' fault

Kota Kinabalu, Jan 27, 2010: Many of the crimes in the residential areas in the city occurred because of negligence on the part of house owners, said City Police Chief ACP Ahmad Sofi Zakaria.

"I conducted a midnight patrol at a housing estate in Manggatal recently and found at least five houses where the main gate and doors were left open," he said.

He was speaking to a group led by Likas assemblyman Datuk Liew Teck Chan who had come to see him yesterday.

Among others, they spoke on the frequent theft of scrap iron, burglaries, drug abuse and traffic congestion along the Tuaran Road .

Ahmad sofi told them that police would launch "High Profile Policing" in areas such as Luyang, Dah Yeh Villa and Likas to better prevent crime.

"I hope the communities will continue to provide valuable information to the police," he said.

Liew commended the city police for their work saying: "on behalf of the police in my constituency, I commend the police for their excellent performance and we are pleased there were no serious crimes reported last year,"

He however, urged police to monitor several cyber cafes in Luyang found operating beyond the permitted hours.

"We received complaints from parents in Luyang that their children often remain in the cafes until the late hours," said Liew.

So far, they have set up 17 Rela platoons with some 300 members to help the police patrol areas in Luyang, Dah Yeh Villa and Likas.

Ahmad Sofi assured the police would discuss with the local authorities to resolve the problem of cyber cafes operating beyond permitted hours and to look into traffic congestion.

Police have formed a "Jam Squad" to regulate traffic flow along congested roads.

NST

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