Gauteng identifies more than 400 crime kingpins — Lesufi [VIDEO]

Gauteng province is cracking down on crime, having identified more than 400 kingpins involved in criminal activities, according to Premier Panyaza Lesufi.

Lesufi made the remarks during his 2025 State of the Province Address in Tshwane on Monday night.

Gauteng crime

The premier acknowledged that Gauteng faces several pressing issues, including crime and potholes, among other problems.

The third quarter crime statistics, from 1 October to 31 December 2024, revealed that Gauteng recorded the highest percentage of murder cases, at 25%, followed by KwaZulu-Natal (21.4%), the Eastern Cape (18.9%), and the Western Cape (17.4%).

The latest crime statistics were released by Police Minister Senzo Mchunu last week.

Watch Panyaza Lesufi speaking about Gauteng cracking down on crime

[ICYMI] "We have identified 442 kingpins as the people that are causing crimes," – Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi says the kingpins are behind the cash-in-transit robberies, kidnappings, and contract killings. Lesufi says the police are monitoring them on a 24-hour basis. pic.twitter.com/iRHeZXdZI0

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Kingpins  

Lesufi said the province is making inroads into criminal activity.

“Together with the private sector, we are proud to report that we have identified a new mechanism that has identified 442 kingpins as the people who are causing crime in our province,

“Together with the private sector, the police and other intelligence networks, we have unleashed a surveillance capability among the 442 people so that we can monitor their movements, we can monitor where they stay.

“We can even monitor the acts that they want to commit, especially cash-in-transit heists, kidnappings, hijackings, rented murder,  ATM bombings, blue light gangs and business robberies,” Lesufi said,

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Arrests

Lesufi said at least 50 of the kingpins have so far been arrested.

“Using this signal and surveillance on 442 crime kingpins in Gauteng, together with the police, we have arrested 50 of them, and within the next six months, we will be on the tracks of the remaining numbers.

“We really believe this is a groundbreaking exercise. The 442 people, these are the people who are planning crimes, these are the people who are killing people, these are the people who are hijacking cars and committing horrendous acts in our province,” Lesufi added.

Monitoring

Lesufi said they are monitoring the crime kingpins on a 24-hour basis.

“We want to congratulate the SA Police Service. Last night, an alleged mastermind linked to the murder of a Sandton businessman was about to flee the country to Ethiopia. While he was at the airport, he was arrested. He is now in jail,” said Lesufi on Monday.

Sandton murder

Lesufi was referring to the murder of Sandton businessman Andrew Lambrianos, who was killed in December 2023.

Lieutenant-Colonel Amanda van Wyk said a 42-year-old Argentinian national was arrested at OR Tambo International Airport on Sunday morning, moments before departing on a flight to Addis Ababa in Ethiopia when the police stopped him.

Van Wyk added that police believe he is the “mastermind”.

The 43-year-old Lambrianos, who was the owner of a tax consultancy in Sandton, was pulling out of his driveway in Coleraine Drive when a group of gunmen sprayed his vehicle with bullets in December 2023.

Lambrianos was rushed to hospital, where he later died.

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