After several thefts, the Asser football club Achilles 1894 has had enough. There are now surveillance cameras in various places around the sports field to prevent further theft. “We want to guarantee safety in the association.”
The burglaries happened in different ‘waves’, chairman Peter de Jong explains. “Theft occurs on a regular basis, both outside the fences and inside the fences. For example, bicycles have already been stolen and items have been stolen from the locker room.”
This has happened several times in previous years and it happened again this year. “Then we thought: now we’ve had enough, now we’re going to put up cameras. An annoying measure, but unfortunately necessary.” Someone was convicted in September of (among other things) one of those thefts.
De Jong especially hopes that the cameras have a preventive effect and that it is not necessary to check the images. “We hope it doesn’t happen again now.” The surveillance cameras should also improve the atmosphere, De Jong explains. “Now you have suspicions about who is responsible for the theft, and that is not the atmosphere that should exist. To prevent that, we have now installed cameras.”
The association says it ‘understands that it is sensitive’. Yet, according to De Jong, it is necessary. “You want to ensure the safety of the association.” There have been no negative reactions to the board’s decision yet. “We mainly hear that it is annoying that it is necessary, but that it is a good step.”