Over 18,000 arrested in police operations

Posted on August 27, 2025August 27, 2025 by

The South African Police Service (SAPS) has arrested 18 634 suspects over the past week - signaling reaffirmation of public safety and the rule of law.

Among those arrested were 3 087 wanted individuals linked to serious and violent crimes, including murder, rape, hijacking and armed robbery. According to the police, 131 suspects were arrested for murder 140 for attempted murder and 157 for rape.

Meanwhile, 722 suspects were arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, while 1714 suspects were nabbed for illegal migration offences.

A total of 106 suspects were arrested for illegal possession of firearms. KwaZulu-Natal led with 32 arrests; Eastern Cape followed with 21 arrests and Gauteng secured 19 arrests.

Police also arrested 232 suspects for drug trafficking.

The week’s operations also led to the seizure of high-value contraband and dangerous goods, including 18,882 units of abalone, 180 firearms, and 2 921 rounds of ammunition.

Meanwhile, SAPS National Commissioner, General Fannie Masemola, led a drug destruction process worth more than R 400 million in Gauteng.

In a separate enforcement operation, on Friday, 22 August 2025, the National Tracking and Tracing Task Team, under Operation Buyisa, seized 226 firearms from a registered private security company after uncovering serious contraventions of the Firearms Control Act, 2000 (Act 60 of 2000).

Additionally, a coordinated Inter-Provincial Operation led to the arrests of 116 suspects across Frances Baard, Namakwa, and Pixley Ka Seme in the Northern Cape. Major seizures in Colesberg included illicit cigarettes and a truck worth R7.5 million, plus stolen goods and a maroon VW Polo linked to criminal activity.

Recovered items spanned firearms, ammunition, counterfeit goods, drugs, alcohol, weapons, and cash.

New Rules for E-Hailing Drivers

Posted on August 27, 2025August 27, 2025 by

Transport Minister Barbara Creecy has confirmed that new legislation will soon regulate the e-hailing sector, following ongoing tensions and violent incidents in Soweto involving drivers.

Creecy told the Sunday Times that the National Land Transport Amendment (NLTA) Act will set out clear rules for services such as Uber and Bolt. The aim is to ease friction with the taxi industry, especially after a recent attack at Maponya Mall where an e-hailing driver was killed. Although the law has been in development for more than a decade, President Cyril Ramaphosa signed it into effect in 2024.

The new system will issue official e-hailing operating licenses, replacing the current use of charter permits and metered taxi licenses. Vehicles will need visible signs identifying them as e-hailing cars, and licenses will specify the areas in which they are allowed to operate.

Drivers will undergo vetting, criminal record checks, and will be required to hold professional driving permits. To improve safety, vehicles must also be fitted with panic buttons, and drivers’ profile photos must remain updated for accurate passenger verification.

Non-compliance could lead to penalties of up to R100,000 or prison terms of as much as two years. Authorities will also have the power to suspend or revoke licenses if operators break the rules. The Act, approved by Creecy in March, is expected to be gazetted in October once translated into a second official language.

Tensions between the taxi industry and e-hailing platforms have been ongoing for years. Groups like the Soweto Taxi Association and Santaco have argued that unlicensed operators pretending to be e-hailing drivers undercut legitimate services, fueling conflict. The NLTA is intended to close these gaps and bring more fairness to the industry.

Creecy emphasized that while the Act should reduce violence, it will not halt the broader evolution of transport. She noted that taxi operators need to adapt to changing realities or risk being left behind. Research has shown that minibus taxis remain best suited for short-distance travel in areas like the Western Cape, while rail is more efficient for longer trips.

Her department is also working with Gauteng and the Western Cape on better integration between transport modes, with Gauteng developing a single ticket system that could be used across buses, taxis, and trains.

StatsSA releases latest Crime Survey

Posted on August 27, 2025August 27, 2025 by

The latest Governance, Public Safety and Justice Survey (GPSJS) 2024/25 report, released by Statistics South Africa, reveals that housebreaking is the most common crime experienced by households in the country. While the household experience of housebreaking has decreased slightly, home robbery has increased slightly in 2024/25 compared to the 2023/24 period.

The report shows that in 2024/25, an estimated 1.5 million incidences of housebreaking occurred, affecting about 1.1 million households in South Africa. This represents 5.7% of all households in the country. Around 43.4% of households that experienced housebreaking reported some or all incidences to the police.

An estimated 259,000 incidences of home robbery occurred in 2024/25, affecting 213,000 households (about 1.1% of all households). Of these, 51.3% reported some or all incidences to the police.

Theft of personal property remains the most common crime experienced by individuals aged 16 years and older. In 2024/25, there were about 1.3 million incidences of theft, affecting 1.2 million individuals - 2.6% of those 16 years and older. Only 31% of victims reported some or all incidences to the police.

The second most common crime experienced by individuals was consumer fraud. In 2024/25, about 566,000 individuals experienced consumer fraud, with an estimated 811,000 incidences. This represents a sharp increase from 367,000 cases in 2023/24. About 34.9% of affected individuals reported some or all incidences to the police.

The survey further reveals that 81% of individuals aged 16 years and older felt safe walking alone in their neighbourhoods during the day, while only 36.1% felt safe walking alone after dark. Females reported feeling significantly more unsafe at night compared to males.

The proportion of individuals who took measures to protect themselves against crime increased from 39.9% in 2023/24 to 43.3% in 2024/25. Among these, 29.9% indicated that restricting themselves to walking only during safer hours was the main precaution they adopted.