The worst hijacking spots in South Africa

Crime data shows that Gauteng is by far the worst place in the country for car theft and hijackings, with precincts around Joburg and Pretoria hardest hit.

This is according to data from Crime Stats SA, an online database run by Meerkat Data Management, which neatly displays official reported crime data from the South African Police Service (SAPS).

The worst 10 precincts for hijacking in the country are largely found in Gauteng, adding weight to the province’s title as the hijacking capital of South Africa.

Car hijacking

In 2014, the SAPS reported 11,129 cases of carjacking, and 989 cases of truck hijacking, with Gauteng accounting for 6,057 (54%) and 545 (55%) of the total.

Truck hijacking

More prolific is the presence of car theft, which refers to cars (or motorcycles) stolen when unoccupied. In 2014, the SAPS reported 56,616 cases.

Again, Gauteng tops the list for worst-affected, accounting for 27,372 – almost half (48%) of the total.

Car or motor vehicle theft

The data for 2014’s stats covers April 2013 to March 2014 – and because of this, is at least 6 months out of date by the time of public release. 2015’s stats are expected to be released in September.

According Africacheck.org, there are other caveats to crime data, most notably that many crimes go unreported; that the SAPS data is unaudited; and that there is widespread mistrust of the SAPS itself.

The group warned that the stats should be taken in context of population sizes – ie, as the most populous province, Gauteng is more likely to have incidences of crime.

Independent security firm, the Crime Intelligence Bureau, recently released a map showing all the car hijacking hotspots in Johannesburg.

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