Calls by South Africans for police to decisively deal with crime are not falling on deaf ears, Police Minister Bheki Cele said on Friday.
Releasing the quarterly crime statistics in Cape Town for the period between October and December 2022, Cele said the police will continue to intensify intelligence-led operations to take down individuals or organised criminals hellbent on terrorising communities.
The minister, joined by national police commissioner General Fannie Masemola and SA Police Service (SAPS) management, said during the reporting period, all contact crimes increased by 11.6%.
The statistics show that police operations over the 2022 festive season resulted in the arrests of 52 711 suspects for crimes ranging from murder, sexual offences, assaults, carjackings and other serious crimes.
“We are enriched by the stabilisation of the crime intelligence division of the SAPS through the appointment of a divisional commissioner with a wealth of policing and investigative experience,” he said.
Cele said while the alarming crime figures do not paint an overall positive picture, they illustrate that the police are pushing back on criminality through visible policing and disruptive operations.
“Plainly put, more boots on the ground was not just a slogan, their impact has been felt and is starting to make a difference in our communities.”
He illustrated how investigations into recent mass shootings in Eastern Cape, Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal have led to arrests in Bityi, Nomzamo, Pietermaritzburg and KwaNobuhle, respectively.
“We welcome the six out of the eight life sentences handed down by the Pietermaritzburg High Court on the Glebelands eight [convicts], who were behind the killing spree at the Durban hostel,” he said.
He further said the political task team investigating the murders in KwaZulu-Natal continues to put the hitmen and those who order assassinations on their political rivals behind the bars.
“Police are also cleaning house and ridding the service of officers who choose to partner with rogue criminal elements.”
In the current financial year, 46 police officers have been dismissed for various transgressions.
“With that said, we know and understand that police alone will not be able to drive out criminality on our streets in our alleyways, in our homes, schools and places of leisure and worship. We call on communities to take charge and be allies in safety.”
While it is the job of police officers to prevent, combat and investigate crime, “a community-centred approach in the prevention and combating of crime will yield better results”.
Below are the crime statistics released by the minister:
| Crime Category | Figures |
| Murder | 10.1% |
| Sexual offences | 9.6% |
| Attempted murder | 24.3% |
| Assault to do grievous bodily harm | 8.7% |
| Common assault | 12.0% |
| Common robbery | 21.2% |
| Robbery with aggravating circumstances | 10.8% |
– SAnews.gov.za
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