The Department of Correctional Services embarked on a sting operation to check on gender based violence and femicide parolees in Mamelodi on Friday night.
The unannounced operation was led by the Department’s National Commissioner Makgothi Samuel Thobakgale.
Members of the media were invited to join the operation at the Mamelodi East Police Station before proceeding to the houses of the various parolees.
“This monitoring operation is aimed at making sure that parolees adhere to their parole conditions and send those who don’t comply in this regard back to prison,” said Makgothi Samuel Thobakgale speaking to Tshwane Talks after the operation had been completed.
“What we have observed tonight is that some parolees have not been found at home and for instance one parolee was found outside his yard sitting in a car with his friend and drinking liquor, and we took him back straight to jail,” said Thobakgale.
He said Friday night’s operation entailed 70 cases.
He revealed that there are about 500 parolees in Mamelodi and that this number is one of the highest in the country for any community, and that 70 of such cases are for gender-based violence and femicide and that this situation is very concerning.
“We want to clamp down on these heinous kinds of crimes so that women and girl children are safe in Mamelodi,” he said.
“The message to the parolees is very simple; when you are released on parole you are given conditions which are explained to you and your guardian; just comply with the said conditions and you will finish your sentence without having to come back to the correctional facility, just like one parolee that we found in his home as required by the parole conditions,” said Mogale as he indicated that the said parolee will be finishing his sentence next month and that they as the Department of Correctional Services are not expecting the said parolee to be an offender again.
It emerged that four GBV and femicide parolees are living within a radius of 1,5 kilometers of each other and this raised alarms regarding the prevalence of the above-mentioned crimes in that area, but Thobakgale said this scenario must be attributed to the fact that people are living close to one another and that there are social ills that have led to the perpetrators committing GBV and femicide crimes.
“We need to work closely with the communities to shape and monitor the behaviour of young men in particular and men in general and educate them about the wrongfulness of committing crimes,” he said.
Yet another parolee was found absent from his homestead and Commissioner Thobakgale said he won’t address him but that the parolee was served with a notice regarding the fact that he has violated his parole conditions.
It emerged that the guardian of this very parolee is a 70-year -old woman who can’t provide the said parolee with the necessary support and monitor him, and as a result the parolee’s sister has replaced the 70-year-old lady.
“Conditions for parolees differ, but each parolee has their own conditions which have been outlined to them and which they must comply with, and failure by parolees in this regard sends the message which implies that they don’t deserve to be out on parole and that they must be taken back to prison,” he said.
“Many families were frustrated, angry, shocked and confused by the Correctional Services’ unannounced visits to their homes and couldn’t believe what was happening.