THE KWAZULU-NATAL MEC for Transport, Community Safety and Liaison, Willies Mchunu, has welcomed the arrests of more than 12 000 suspects for various crimes in the province during operation Fiela which comprised SAPS, SANDF, Home Affairs and Metro Police.
The joint operation targeted places suspected of harbouring criminals. Dangerous weapons and illegal substances were also recovered during the operations.
Police revealed that since the inception of Fiela, at least 12 171 suspects were arrested including: 223 suspects for murder, 137 for possession of unlicensed firearms, 169 for rape, 146 for robberies, house breaking, possession of drugs, stock theft, theft, assault, fraud, kidnapping and other crimes. The suspects have appeared in various courts in the province.
During operation Fiela, drugs, liquor, cellphones, jewellery, counterfeit goods, electronic appliances, unlicensed firearms and ammunition were among the items recovered.
Mchunu welcomed the number of arrests and hailed operation Fiela, saying it would go a long way towards reducing crime in the Province.
“We thank all the law enforcement agencies that are involved in operation Fiela which has yielded such significant results in the province. We welcome the arrests of these suspects because it sends a loud and clear message that the long arm of the law will always catch up with suspects. We commend the law enforcement agencies for this joint initiative that is flushing out criminals from our communities. We urge the agencies to continue with these initiatives and to continue with their investigations so the suspects can be convicted and sentenced,” said Mchunu.
