The recently released statistics by the Johannesburg Metro Police Department’s specialised units show the City’s performance in September this year.
The statistics which pertain to crime, by-law enforcement and traffic infringements in the City of Johannesburg were presented by the Chief of Police David Tembe, joined by MMC for Public Safety councillor Michael Sun and shows the City can hold itself accountable.
JMPD spokesperson Chief Superintendent Wayne Minnaar said for over a year the City has committed to releasing the JMPD performance statistics. “This commitment was made to residents of Johannesburg so that we can keep them in our confidence on how the JMPD allocates its limited resources to combat crime and lawlessness,” he said.
The monthly statistics have also been to the benefit of their members, who can reflect on progress made and can identify where more work is needed. “Drunk driving operations remain in full force as the number of arrests for driving under the influence of alcohol reached 1 033 across the regions compared to August’s record 1 101 arrests.”
The Accident Unit recorded 26 pedestrian and 11 driver fatalities on the roads in that month. The latest statistics will allow JMPD to take a look at its performance statistics for the first quarter of the 2019/20 financial year. “Considering this, the total number of arrests for drunken driving is at 2 924 for the quarter. The JMPD has bolstered operations across the City and continue to allocate resources to areas like Lenasia where seven land invasion operations were conducted.”
The Special Patrol Unit, which recently received 40 additional high-performance vehicles, was able to achieve a major increase in issued citations from 540 in August this year to 928 in September. The K9 Narcotics and Tactical Unit recovered an impressive 525 units of ammunition compared to 145 in August.
The newly created Integrated Intelligence Operation Centre (IIOC) Unit, focusing on inner-city crime through CCTV monitoring, has made 145 arrests for the first quarter. This unit has now also been tasked with responding to illegal dumping and has already impounded 32 vehicles. Fines of R10 000 each have been paid for by 13 vehicles so far.
In terms of arrests for the top six crime types across all regions, excluding drunk driving, the JMPD in September made:
- 24 for hijacked or stolen motor vehicles (35 in August)
- 14 for possession of unlicensed firearms (34 in August)
- 26 for common robbery (13 in August)
- 11 for assault (12 in August)
- 5 for stolen goods (11 in August)
- 7 for possession of drugs (10 in August)
The City was also looking forward to the introduction of 800 new JMPD officers, who have been undergoing training before the end of the year. MMC Sun encouraged the residents to support JMPD officers who work hard to ensure their safety every day. “It is shocking to see certain actions taken by the very people JMPD is meant to protect as was seen in a recent viral video clip where bystanders cheered as a JMPD officer was attacked. This culture must not be allowed to continue,” Sun said.
“Our JMPD officers are often ridiculed and insulted by some on social media and this kind of behaviour, too, degenerate our morale in building a united and safe society and must be condemned.”
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