SA border crisis: Police commissioner had to ‘beg’ for return of 70 stolen cars in another country

The National Commissioner of the South African Police Service (Saps), General Fannie Masemola, has called on the country’s law enforcement agencies to stop crime within the country before criminals cross the borders.

Masemola delivered the keynote address at the official opening of the development of South Africa’s national strategy to prevent and combat transnational organised crime.

According to the police, the five-day strategy session will bring together stakeholders from the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region, including detectives, crime intelligence officers, Interpol officers, and border policing experts.

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According to police spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe, participants will develop strategies to tackle the challenges of transnational organised crime in South Africa. These challenges include porous borders, drug trafficking, the influx of illegal immigrants and the proliferation of firearms.

‘Let’s defend this country’

Masemola called on the participants to devise strategies for securing the country. This, as criminals are finding creative ways to commit crimes.

“We need to work together in order to win this fight against organised crime, including transnational organised crime,” said Masemola.

WATCH: Police commissioner on SA’s strategy to combat organised crime

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“Transnational organised crime is no longer confined to isolated regions or specific illicit markets. It thrives in a world interconnected by technology, trade and finance, human trafficking, cyber crimes, illegal arms trade, environmental crimes, and financial fraud that has created an intricate web of activities posing threats to governments, economies and communities.

“We need to catch up with this very intricate organised crime.”

Masemola said stopping criminals within South Africa’s borders should be a priority, as it is difficult to recover stolen property once it crosses the border.

“Time and again, we liaise with other countries to create cooperation, and quite often, we’re told that before you come here, you must fix it at home,” said Masemola.

“I’ve been in Mozambique many times repatriating South African vehicles that are there. At some point, we even had a checkpoint inside Mozambique to confiscate South African stolen vehicles that would pass through that point.

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“The day we were shown the door, they said you can’t come and catch your vehicle in our country, catch them there at home. In Zambia, I was negotiating to get about 70 vehicles, but they all had registration papers. I was asked, ‘We hear you want these 70 vehicles back to South Africa, but they’re here, and they have registration documents. How did they get here?’ That’s how complex this problem is.”

Border crisis: criminals coming into SA

Masemola said the strategy should stop criminals from leaving South Africa with stolen property and those coming into the country to commit crimes on South African soil.

“How come you find a Mexican at a farm in Groblersdal? How does a Mexican get there? He can only get there because he has the assistance of criminals in our own backyard. Let’s defend this country for the future of the children of this country.”

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However, he acknowledged that the strategy would work only if the right people occupy important positions within law enforcement agencies.

“Our strategy should be practically implementable, and at the same time, we must not give information away to criminals. It must work for us and ensure we have all it takes, including colleagues who are around.

“Don’t leave the right people at the office and bring those who will not assist us much. We want all the skills required to ensure that when we implement this strategy, we stop all these ills that are coming into the country.”

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