Police Minister General Bheki Cele, on Sunday morning (5 April) has welcomed the general decrease in serious and violent crimes during the lockdown.
Cele attributed this to a number of factors including the prohibition of the sale and movement of liquor since the Covid-19 nationwide lockdown.
The 2019-2020 National Crime Statistics are yet to be officially released, however, during an analysis of crime from the first week of the lockdown, compared to the same period last year, Cele confirmed:
- Murder cases have dropped from 326 to 94
- Rape cases have dropped from 699 to 101
- Cases of assault with intent to inflict grievous bodily harm dropped from 2 673 to 456 case
- Trio crimes (which include carjackings, house robberies and business robberies) dropped from 8 853 to 2 098.
Cele said that the number of complaints of gender-based violence (GBV) remains high and concerning. From 27 March to 31 March, over 2 300 calls or complaints were registered. From these complaints, 148 suspects were charged.
The minister raised his concerns about the possible increase in cases of gender-based violence and domestic violence when the State of Disaster was declared on 15 March and urged police management to ensure that police stations were ready to handle these complaints.
Cele said, “Considering the improved rate of life sentences secured by the FCS [Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences] units in the past, one is optimistic that police will continue to work around the clock towards securing successful convictions and long-term sentences of perpetrators of crimes against women and children. This should remain the practice even beyond the lockdown as GBV remains a scourge across the country.”
Cele also welcomed the drop in the number of complaints against the police during the lockdown. “The decrease in the number of complaints which were high over the first days of the lockdown reflects stabilisation and confirms that people are now beginning to understand the lockdown and are complying with the regulations and that people are now cooperating with the members of the law enforcement entities.”
The police, South African National Defence Force, Metro police and other law enforcement agencies will remain on high alert to ensure maximum adherence to the lockdown regulations.
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