Carjackings in South Africa – here are the major trends and hotspot areas

The South African Police Service has published crime statistics for 2019/20, showing a clear increase in car and truck hijacking across the country.

In the 17 categories of community reported crimes, cases of carjacking have seen the biggest increase year-on-year, with the SAPS reporting 18,162 cases between 1 April 2019 to 31 March 2020.

This equates to 50 cars being stolen in South Africa every day. Truck hijackings also saw a slight increase, up 1.7% to 1,202 cases in the same time period.

When looking at how these crimes were committed, the data shows that criminals used firearms in the large majority of carjacking cases (15,110 incidences).

Physical force/body parts and knives were also frequently used, with 1,136 and 553 reported cases respectively.

When looking at the major trends associated with these crimes, the SAPS’ data shows that carjackings are most common on weekdays (Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday).

The largest number of cases are reported between 18h00 – 20h59.

As with the country’s other major crimes statistics, majority of cases were reported in the most populous areas.

Most of carjacking cases are reported in Gauteng (9,025), followed by KZN (3,041) and the Eastern Cape (2,760). Sedans and hatchbacks are the most popular targets, followed by bakkies and taxis.

Nyanga in the Western Cape reported the most number of carjackings (383), followed by Mamelodi East in Gauteng (240).

The table below highlights the areas which have had the most hijacking cases reported to their respective police stations:

Read: South Africa crime stats 2020: everything you need to know