Police have revealed that 222 rape suspects, including seven who are accused of raping minors, were taken into custody over the past week.
This comes as the police continue to step up their efforts to combat crimes related to gender-based violence (GBV) by conducting investigations and several tracing operations throughout the country.
Police released these statistics in response to stories that went viral about older men alleged to have raped and abused minors.
Concerning increase in rape of minors
These cases include a 2024 case where a seven-year-old girl named Cwecwe, from Matatiele in the Eastern Cape, was raped, allegedly at her school, Bergview College, in the same town.
In this case, no one has been arrested. However, Police Minister Senzo Mchunu said investigations are ongoing.
In Limpopo, a 58-year-old male teacher was arrested on March 31 for the alleged rape of a 13-year-old female learner at Capricorn District in Limpopo.
In another incident, a 54-year-old man was nabbed on April 2 for allegedly raping his 11-year-old neighbour. The incident happened on March 31 in the Ritavi area, Limpopo. Additionally, a 36-year-old suspect appeared before the Mahwelereng Magistrate’s Court on April 7 2025, for allegedly raping his four-year-old niece.
Meanwhile, in Mpumalanga, a 79-year-old man was arrested at Cottondale Trust in Acornhoek on March 30. He was nabbed for the alleged rape of a 14-year-old girl.
School incidents
A 24-year-old teacher was arrested for the alleged rape of a 15-year-old female learner at the school premises in Nelspruit on November 7. The suspect was released pending further investigation. The docket has been submitted to the director of public prosecutions for a decision on whether to prosecute.
Two suspects aged 56 and 59 years were arrested on April 4. They appeared in the Schweizer-Reneke Magistrate’s Court in North West for the alleged rape of a seven-year-old minor in December 2024.
National police spokesperson Athlenda Mathe said 2,293 suspects were arrested countrywide.
“These suspects were wanted for various serious and violent crimes. The crimes include murder, attempted murder, rape, business and house robberies,” said Mathe.
She said 131 suspects were arrested for murder. Majority of these suspects were arrested in Eastern Cape. AA total of 166 suspects were arrested for attempted murder, and 222 suspects were arrested for rape. And 1, 558 suspects were arrested for assault GBH during this period. A total of 222 drug dealers were arrested in the past week.
Western Cape leading in drug-related arrests
She also revealed that the majority arrests for possession of drugs were arrested in the Western Cape.
“1, 725 suspects were arrested for being in possession of drugs. And 821 of these suspects were arrested in the Western Cape. Also, 105 suspects were arrested for illegal possession of firearms. And 1, 048 illegal foreign nationals were also arrested during this period, while 454 drivers were arrested for drunken driving in the past week. Majority of arrests were made in Gauteng,” said Mathe
