NATIONAL NEWS - South Africa faces an onslaught of violent crimes, including murder, attempted murder, assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm and rape.
This is according to Minister of Police Senzo Mchunu, who released the quarterly crime statistics on Monday.
On a positive note, the stats from 1 July to 30 September indicate that contact crime decreased by 3%, property-related crime by 9.9%, and other serious crime by 3.4%.
“Focusing on contact crime, the statistics indicate that murder decreased by 5.8%, sexual offences by 2.5%, and robbery with aggravating circumstances by 8.8%.
“Additionally, rape decreased by 3.1%, while robbery at residential premises and non-residential premises decreased by 1.3% and 21.1%, respectively,” the minister said.
Among the 17 community-reported crime categories monitored, increases were observed in attempted murder (2.2%), assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm (1%) and commercial crime (18.5%).
The minister said that gender-based violence, which has become a national priority crime, continues to devastate families and communities, with a ‘unique set of challenges that demand specialised intervention, thorough investigations and collaborative solutions’.
Organised crime also continues to grow.
“We are also grappling with economic crimes that threaten the foundations of our economy and the livelihoods of millions of South Africans, including extortion and criminality on critical infrastructure.”
“The co-ordination of criminal activities from within prison facilities remains a significant concern. This practice undermines public safety and highlights the need for stricter oversight and enhanced security measures within correctional institutions. These events serve as a call to action for collaborative efforts to disrupt organised crime and reinforce justice,” he said.
Mchunu added that illegal mining ‘remains a significant threat’ to our economy and public safety.
“The ministry’s oversight inspection at the Stilfontein shaft has brought renewed focus to this issue. We are satisfied that our actions in Stilfontein are all in keeping with the Constitution and the laws of the republic.
“No illegal miners will remain underground; we need to optimise our co-operation between government and all other stakeholders and our stance is bearing fruit, with an additional 14 illegal miners having resurfaced late last night.”
Successes
The minister said ‘significant strides’ have been made in the justice system since he assumed office, including:
- 265 life sentences for 222 people, including 61 for murder and 198 for rape.
- 17 arrests and seven convictions, including four life sentences, for police killings.
- Drugs valued at R77.7m were seized, and five people were arrested for manufacturing drugs worth an estimated R2b on a farm near Groblersdal.
- Confiscation of 84 firearms, 2 069 rounds of ammunition and seven explosives.
- Arrest of 115 suspects involved in cash-in-transit heists and related crimes.
- Charging of 44 suspects with money laundering, with 15 convictions.
- Issuing 75 freezing and forfeiture orders totalling R72.98m.
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