A victimless crime?

[DDP]( [Mail & Guardian Newsletter logo](#) [mg.co.za]( [The Ampersand Daily Newsletter from the M&G team](#) [Divider Strip] October 01 2020 | [View in browser]( [Divider Strip] [Facebook icon]( [Twitter icon]( [Instagram icon]( [LinkedIn icon]( Hi there, In April 2015, the Hatton Garden Safe Deposit Company, an underground safe deposit facility in London's Hatton Garden area, was burgled. Carried out by a coterie of pensioners and a tech wizard called Basil, the incident has been called the "largest burglary in British legal history". The gang of career criminals, led by 76-year-old Brian Reader entered the facility -- with the help of Basil's access to a key; disabled a second-floor lift; climbed down the shaft to the basement; forced their way through iron gates into the vault; drilled through the 50cm concrete wall (failing the first time and returning 48 hours later); and emptied the vault's 73 safe deposit boxes, leaving their tools at the scene. We may never know the exact value of their haul, but they made off with gems and cash worth up to 200-million. All without laying a finger on anyone. Devil-may-care chutzpah. Sticking it to The Man. As per all heist movies, it's packaged as good, harmless fun. The only loser is the insurance company! We see it in the movies all the time. A daring digital heist that sees a plucky group of likeable hackers scoop up a small fortune for themselves. But such sentiments, if they ever seemed appropriate, feel wrong today. Absa bank and the department of justice are investigating just such a reality. Sabelo Skiti can reveal that [R10-million was stolen from the accounts of the Guardian's Fund]( in the Pietermaritzburg master of the court offices. Both the department and Absa are desperately trying to recover the funds and are currently investigating the suspected hack. Last week it was discovered that the money had been siphoned off in 11 transactions. Well-placed sources say the theft emanated from Absa's side, but there is still no confirmation that it was indeed a cyberattack. But this isn't a victimless crime. The Guardian's Fund falls under the master of the high court and was created to manage money on behalf of people who are legally incapable of managing their affairs. This includes minors, unborn heirs, and missing or absent persons. In a country such as ours, we're all familiar with what crime and its consequences really look like, but our tolerance for embracing it as entertainment has not diminished, not our indulgence of those who act as if they're above the law. Crime never really pays on screen: we ought to devalue it in our lives. Now more than ever we would like to provide you with a healthy dose of noise-cancelling journalism. Help us continue our work with a [subscription from as little as R99 a month](. Until tomorrow, Kiri Rupiah & Luke Feltham [Divider Strip] [SAHRC]( [Divider Strip] [Facebook icon]( [Twitter icon]( [Instagram icon]( [LinkedIn icon]( You are receiving this email on {EMAIL} because 1.) You're a member of "Mail & Guardian" or 2.) previously subscribed [M&G logo] 25 Owl St, Braamfontein Werf, Johannesburg, 2092 Want to be removed? No problem! [UNSUBSCRIBE]( Email support: help@media-connect.co.za - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -