Awards show Bay police streets ahead

Dedicated officer, unit help put brakes on hijackers A Port Elizabeth Flying Squad officer has scooped a national award for recovering the most stolen and hijacked vehicles in the country. Sergeant Severiano Blundin, 33, was given the award by provincial commissioner General Liziwe Ntshinga during a ceremony at the unit’s emergency call centre in Korsten yesterday. He was named the winner of the Annual Tracker Individual Award at a ceremony in Midrand last month. Blundin joined the police 11 years ago and has recovered 103 stolen or hijacked vehicles. He arrested 130 people in that period. As part of the prize, Blundin selected Sinethemba Children’s Care Centre in Stanford Road as the beneficiary of R10 000 from Tracker. Blundin said yesterday he was born to fight crime. “Ever since I was a child, being a policeman is all I wanted to do,” he said. “Every car I get back and every criminal I arrest, is me doing my little bit to keep people safer. “When your car is hijacked or stolen, it [brings] a massive financial burden. “[With] each culprit I arrest and vehicle I recover, I know someone, somewhere, is grateful. That is all I want.” Asked how he managed to surpass all other provinces in finding stolen cars and arresting hijackers and thieves, Blundin said it was due to persistence.