Gauteng police commissioner Lieutenant General Tommy Mthombeni says the downward trajectory of the province's crime statistics makes him hopeful that they are moving in the right direction. Mthombeni presented an overview of the provincial crime statistics for the third quarter of the 2024/2025 financial year. The statistics show a decrease of 6.5% in overall crime between October and December 2024.

PROGRESS

He said that this was not only achieved through the work of SAPS but also included other law enforcement agencies and stakeholders. "The Cooperation Agreement, as we are all aware, aims to enhance collaboration and coordination among all stakeholders to address safety and security concerns effectively,' he said. Mthombeni said that the period from October to December marks the festive season, which typically sees an increase in crime due to increased population movement in and out of the province, but he said it was different in the last quarter. "Through our integrated operations over the period under review, Operation Shanela helped us secure 34,910 arrests for various crimes, including 10,936 illegal immigrants and 4,601 suspects arrested for contact crimes, including 140 arrests for murder and 114 for attempted murder.'

Additionally, Gauteng police arrested 1,836 suspects for grievous bodily harm, 1,650 for common assault, and 240 for robbery. Furthermore, 1,414 illegal liquor establishments were shut down, over 160 million millilitres of alcohol were confiscated, and 4,007 individuals were arrested for liquor-related offences. Mthombeni also highlighted the seizure of 351 illegal firearms, including 31 rifles and seven shotguns, along with 6,608 rounds of ammunition, during these operations.

DRUGS AN ISSUE

Mthombeni acknowledged the work of the Hawks, together with the provincial organised crime investigations, which arrested eight suspects and closed down six drug laboratories with a combined estimated value of R310 million.

ZAMA ZAMAS

The top cop said the police are still working hard to combat illegal mining through Operation Vala Umgodi. "We have arrested 1,034 suspects, including 586 illegal immigrants, and seized their tools of trade, including 1,589 pendukas, 164 generators, 483 explosives, and over 1.7 million frames of gold dust, among other items," he added. He said that they are also dealing decisively with counterfeit and illicit goods. For the quarter under review, we have seized over 420,000 counterfeit and illicit goods valued at R12 million and over R500,000 in cash.

CRIME CATEGORY BREAKDOWN

Mthombeni said contact crimes have decreased by 4.7%, and these include murder, assault, rape, and trio crimes, carjacking, robbery at residential premises, and robbery at non-residential premises, as well as robbery of cash in transit, truck. He said fighting gender-based violence and femicide remains an all-year-round priority for the police. For child protection and sexual offences, police arrested 1,168 sexual offenders. They further presented 221 cases in court where 142 offenders were sentenced to a combined 65 life terms and an additional 303 years imprisonment.