Lifestyle

Violent crime in South Africa is getting worse – here are all the latest stats

Luke Fraser

 ·17 Feb 2023

South Africa saw an increase in violent crime between October and December 2022, with murder, assault and robberies statistics climbing.

Police Minister Bheki Cele said that the statistics don’t paint an overall positive picture of the crime situation in South Africa.

At the release of the crime stats for Q3 2022, Cele said that 7,555 murders were recorded during the period – marking a 10% increase year on year (y-o-y).

Sexual offences also increased by 9.6% – rising from 14,188 to 15,545. Rape (9.8%), sexual assault (4.1%) and attempted sexual offences (45.6%) also increased.

Attempted crime saw the largest y-o-y increase – rising by 24.3% to 7,016 cases.

Common robbery (21.2%), common assault (12.0%), assault with the intent to inflict grievous bodily harm (8.7%), and robbery with aggravated circumstances (10.8%) all increased y-o-y.

Overall, the total number of contact crimes increased by 19,067 (11.6%) from Q3 2021 to Q3 2022.

Although the crime stats show worrying increases, Cele said that the department is pushing back against criminality, and there has been a significant improvement in the number of crimes detected across South Africa.

For example, there was a slight decrease in the number of cash-in-transit heists (-5%), and bank robberies (5 counts lower). The South African Police Service (SAPS) said that the reduction in these crimes was due to greater police visibility through patrols, stop-and-search operations, roadblocks, and vehicle checkpoints.

Overall, the police arrested 52,711 people during the festive period.

The police also got rid of officers who partnered with criminal elements, with 46 fired for various transgressions.

Cele added that the “police are also on the pulse in removing illegal weapons off our streets,” with 65,519 firearms removed and destroyed during the period.

Out of the 7,555 murders recorded during the period, 3,144 people were with a firearm.

Despite admitting that gun violence in South Africa is an issue, Cele said that firearms are only part of a bigger problem.

“High rates of unemployment and poverty levels, the mushrooming of informal settlements with little to no services and other socio-economic ills are breeding criminality, coupled by a high number of undocumented foreign nationals, that are hard to trace after the commission of a crime,“ he said.

However, the minister said that numerous interventions are being introduced to address the issue.

“This Ministry is fast tracking pieces of legislation aimed at closing gaps that are hampering on policing and laws that bolster police work. One such example is the Amendment of the SAPS Act, to strengthen the functioning of Community Policing Forums (CPFs),” Cele said.

He said that the amendments will allow the CPFS to function optimally by giving them greater resources. Across the country, 1,156 police stations currently have CPFS.

The SAPS will also launch – as part of  Operation Vuilindlela – a mass recruitment drive to entice more people to work at the nation’s call centres, as they remain the heart of communication between the police and communities.

In addition, the police will order more patrol and high-powered vehicles to increase police visibility and specialised units to respond effectively to crime.

However, Cele noted that inequality, unemployment and little access to basic services impede the police’s efforts.

He said that the recently adopted Integrated Crime and Violence Prevention Strategy must be fast-tracked to boost safety and security across the country as a whole.

The tables below outline the key statistics.

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SA crime stats: Q3 2021/22 vs Q3 2022/23

• Contact crimes include violent crimes like murder, attempted murder and sexual offences, as well as common assault and robbery.
• Contact-related crimes include arson and malicious injury to property.
• Other serious crimes include commercial crime, shop-lifting, and other types of theft – while aggravated robbery includes hijackings, robbery at residences, and cash-in-transit heists and bank robberies.
• Crimes detected as a result of police action cover crimes discovered by active policing, such as roadblocks and raids. This category covers the illegal possession of firearms, DUI or driving under the influence (of drugs or alcohol), and the use, possession or trade of illegal drugs.

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Biggest increases in crime categories for 2022/23

Crime detected as a result of police action

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Read: Government’s answer to rising crime levels in South Africa