An armed response officer who spends his days patrolling parts of Plumstead, Wynberg and Ottery urges residents to become actively involved in community’s safety efforts.
Adnaan Safodien, an officer with Fidelity ADT, says a teamwork approach to security needs everyone to play their part.
“If we all work together, we can have a safer community and a crime-free one. Don’t always wait for someone else to do something; you can do your bit to ensure your own safety,” he adds.
Safodien has been working in the armed response sector for the past 17 years.
“What attracted me to this line of work was the ability to help people and to make a difference, by being out there visibly patrolling the streets of my assigned areas.”
A particular area that requires attention in his areas, he adds, is the issue of opportunistic crime.
“My colleagues and I deal with a number of incidents where criminals look for easy opportunities to commit crimes. This includes house break-ins and street robberies. This is why it is so important that people are aware of their surroundings and that they alert us if there is anything suspicious in their streets.”
Safodien also urges residents to test their alarm systems as often as possible, in the same way that one would carry out regular maintenance on a car. “We see a lot of false alarms and faulty systems in our area.”
He has responded to several incidents and call-outs in the area over the years, but there are two that stand out for him.
“I remember once being confronted by an unidentified, plain-clothed armed person in the early hours of the morning. The person claimed to be a member of the police, but we were only later able to confirm his identity. Thankfully, all was resolved quickly and safely.”
He shares there was also a sad incident where he responded to a medical emergency at a home.
“I had previously responded to a number of call-outs at his home and had built up a good relationship with the homeowner. Sadly, on the day in question he passed away,” says Safodien.
The 47-year-old husband, father and grandfather lives with his family in Mitchell’s Plain. He says the first thing he does at the end of a shift is to give thanks to the Lord for keeping him safe.
“My family is very important to me, and I love to spend time with them at the end of the day. I also find a game of darts to be an easy and effective way of relaxing,” he says.
