The Rocklands community in Mitchells Plain is mourning the loss of a cherished local hero, who at the age of 87 was still patrolling the streets on his cherished bicycle.
Crimefighter Frederick Pullen peacefully passed away of old age on Saturday.
The stalwart was a founding member of what is now known as the Rocklands Neighbourhood Watch, having initially established the Sky Hawks Neighbourhood Watch in 1992.
Pullen was renowned for his remarkable crimefighting efforts, often seen patrolling the streets on his bike to make sure that families felt safe within their homes.
His daughter, Gwen Pullen, said her dad continued to serve his community until the last despite her efforts to retire him.
“He would steal the bike and then the neighbours would tell me, and before I get home he would put it away,” she recalls with tears in her eyes.
“My dad’s bike was like his second legs. If he couldn’t walk that day, and he's on the bike, then he's 100 percent.”
In a 2017 interview with the Daily Voice, Pullen said he had a mission in life.
He declared: “I have no fear. When gangsters see me, they skrik and run away. I’m not strong, but I’m a tough team player, as everyone knows by now.”
Pullen leaves behind six children, 26 grandchildren, 40 great-grandchildren, and 6 great-great-grandchildren.
As news of his passing spread, tributes began pouring in from all corners of Mitchells Plain.
Valerie Moses, a member of the Rocklands Neighbourhood Watch and a safety activist, shared her memories of Pullen’s relentless commitment to crime prevention.
Moses says: “When he arrived on a corner and there were boys sitting, he would take out the radio and call it in.
“They would leave, he was never afraid. He was respected in the community.”
In 2023, the Mitchells Plain Community Policing Forum (CPF) honoured Pullen in recognition of his unwavering dedication to combating crime.
Lynn Phillips from the Cape Flats Forum says the pensioners consistently placed the community’s needs before everything else.
She adds: “He has been the beacon of hope for many people in Mitchell’s Plain. We will surely miss him.
Gwen said many residents had klomp stories about her dad.
She shares: “[Among] the stories that people were telling was that in the morning around 5am, my dad on his bike escourted women to the station. He was unique. A legend in this area.”
Gwen insists she and her community will not let her dad’s legacy go to waste, saying: “We will fight crime, we will fight gangsterism, and we will try to bring the criminals to book.”
byron.lukas@inl.co.za