City of Joburg raids two more suspected hijacked buildings in Bryanston

Mapaballo Borotho

The City of Johannesburg has raided two suspected hijacked properties in Bryanston.
One property is allegedly linked to a recently arrested suspect and owes the City about R1.1 million in unpaid municipal fees.
Two people have been arrested for being undocumented foreign nationals.

Officials from the City of Johannesburg raided two houses in Bryanston believed to be hijacked on Monday.

The City said one of the properties, located on Bryanston Drive, is believed to be linked to Lawrence Ramalwa, who was arrested last week in connection with an overcrowded hijacked building on Grosvenor Road.

The property reportedly owes the City of Johannesburg about R1.1 million in unpaid water and electricity fees.

Another house on the same road, number 272 Bryanston Drive, has been classified as a problem property and is reportedly owned by a Chinese national. City officials are expected to shut down the house for overcrowding and by-law contraventions.

The raid involved officials from City Power, Joburg Water, Home Affairs and SAPS, after both properties were flagged during an information-gathering drive conducted in December.

Meanwhile, a man claiming to be a buyer of one of the properties, Ross Davey, told Kaya News that the house at number 272 should have been cleared of illegal occupants by November last year. Davey said he lives in the area and stopped to inquire after noticing the raid while driving past.

He added that he had signed an offer to purchase the property through an agent and was informed that it had been illegally occupied.

So far, two arrests have been made during the operation, with one person from each property detained for being undocumented foreign nationals.

The issue of hijacked buildings has become rampant in Johannesburg, with some of these properties described as safe havens for criminal activity, including alleged drug dealing and prostitution.

In 2023, a fire in a hijacked building in Marshalltown, Johannesburg, claimed the lives of more than 70 people and left scores of others homeless.