{"id":143750,"date":"2017-02-08T08:45:00","date_gmt":"2017-02-08T06:45:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/germistoncitynews.co.za\/143750\/dont-let-criminals-spoil-your-valentines-day\/"},"modified":"2017-02-08T09:06:43","modified_gmt":"2017-02-08T07:06:43","slug":"dont-let-criminals-spoil-your-valentines-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/develop.citizen.co.za\/germiston-city-news\/news-headlines\/2017\/02\/08\/dont-let-criminals-spoil-your-valentines-day\/","title":{"rendered":"Don&#8217;t let criminals spoil your Valentine&#8217;s Day"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>A private security company has issued a call on residents to not drop their guard when celebrating Valentine\u2019s Day later this month and to keep personal safety top of mind.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFebruary 14 is all about love and relationships so don\u2019t allow criminals to ruin your special plans,\u201d said Theunis Kotze, general manager ADT inland region.<\/p><div class=\"stream-item stream-item-in-post stream-item-inline-post aligncenter\"><\/div>\n<p>\u201cOpportunistic criminal elements will always be on the lookout for people who appear to be distracted.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo matter what you have planned for the day, you should always be aware of your surroundings and of the people around you.\u201d<\/p><div class=\"stream-item stream-item-in-post stream-item-inline-post aligncenter\"><\/div>\n<p>When arriving at your destination, ensure that your car is locked before leaving the parking area.<\/p>\n<p>Kotze added that it is also best to avoid areas that are isolated as these could put you and your loved one in a vulnerable and dangerous situation.<\/p>\n<p><strong>If you are going out, Kotze suggests:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Let a family member or friend know and tell them approximately what time you expect to return home. They can raise the alarm in case of an emergency.<\/li>\n<li>Always carry some kind of identification.<\/li>\n<li>Memorise and programme to your mobile phone important numbers, including those of your parents, your partner or a close friend and the emergency services.<\/li>\n<li>When your children stay home for the evening, ensure that they are equipped with a panic button and know who to contact in the event of an emergency. They also need to have all the emergency numbers at hand.<\/li>\n<li>When meeting someone for the first time, ensure that it is in a public setting.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Returning home after an evening out:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>If you think you may arrive home after dark, turn on an outside light before you leave or make sure someone is there to meet you at the door.<\/li>\n<li>About two kilometres from your home, turn down the volume of the car radio so that you are more aware of your surroundings.<\/li>\n<li>Keep an eye out for suspicious individuals or vehicles as you approach your driveway. If you do notice anything out of the ordinary, drive away. Go to a neighbour, the local police station or contact your security provider to have an officer accompany you into your property.<\/li>\n<li>Remember to let your family member or friend know that you have arrived safely.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Other articles you may be interested in:<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/germistoncitynews.co.za\/117734\/follow-these-vehicle-safety-tips\/\" target=\"_blank\">Follow these vehicle safety tips<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/germistoncitynews.co.za\/109715\/back-to-school-safety\/\" target=\"_blank\">Share these safety tips with your children<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"stream-item stream-item-below-post-content\">\n<div class='tenancy_slot tenancy_slot_1 jannah_ad' style='display: none;' data-query-id='bc76ca9dd86e8fcea9f40c99c3cf4d3f'><\/div>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Have fun but take your safety into consideration at all times.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1848,"featured_media":101176,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"hasGravity":false,"cxt_article_byline":"","cxt_disable_google_ads":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,2],"tags":[2650,4911,979,969,2734,1392,3036,2868],"class_list":["post-143750","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-local-news","category-news-headlines","tag-adt","tag-be-alert","tag-germiston","tag-germiston-city-news","tag-melissa-hart","tag-safety","tag-safety-tips","tag-valentines-day"],"amp_enabled":true,"category_labels":{"Category":"News","SubCategory":"Local news"},"tag_labels":["adt","be alert","germiston","germiston city news","melissa hart","safety","safety tips","valentine's day"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/develop.citizen.co.za\/germiston-city-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/143750","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/develop.citizen.co.za\/germiston-city-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/develop.citizen.co.za\/germiston-city-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/develop.citizen.co.za\/germiston-city-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1848"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/develop.citizen.co.za\/germiston-city-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=143750"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/develop.citizen.co.za\/germiston-city-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/143750\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/develop.citizen.co.za\/germiston-city-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/101176"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/develop.citizen.co.za\/germiston-city-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=143750"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/develop.citizen.co.za\/germiston-city-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=143750"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/develop.citizen.co.za\/germiston-city-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=143750"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}