Under the banner of Operation Shanela, high-density police operations were carried out across all five districts in the Northern Cape as the police sought to tackle trio crimes, contact crimes, drug and alcohol-related offences, and property-related crimes.
UNDER the banner of Operation Shanela, high-density police operations were carried out across all five districts in the Northern Cape over the past week. The aim was to tackle various crimes including trio crimes, contact crimes, drug and alcohol-related offences, and property-related crimes.
Multi-disciplinary teams across the Province successfully apprehended 292 suspects, including 116 suspects who were on the wanted list for crimes such as murder, rape and assault GBH. These suspects were tracked down and arrested by detectives.
The arrested individuals were implicated in serious crimes, including possession of dangerous weapons, assault GBH, drug dealing, illegal liquor dealing, aggravated robbery, attempted murder, burglary and property damage.
A series of roadblocks, vehicle checkpoints and high-visibility patrols were implemented, resulting in 5,060 individuals and 2,219 vehicles being stopped and searched.
Compliance inspections were carried out at various businesses including second-hand goods dealers, firearms dealers and liquor outlets. This led to the closure of three unlicensed outlets and the seizure of a substantial quantity of liquor.
High visibility patrols were also conducted in rural areas, with several farms and mines being visited.
Disruptive actions meanwhile led to the confiscation of a significant amount of liquor, drugs and dangerous weapons.
The Province also saw the implementation of several social crime prevention activities to address priority crimes. For instance, Kathu Social Crime Prevention, in collaboration with the Community Police Forum, conducted door-to-door visits to tackle housebreaking.
In Batlharos, the Kuruman Public Order Police visited schools and seized several dangerous weapons. In Siyathemba, police officers, along with the Community Police Forum, visited a crèche to interact with young children and raise awareness about child safety and bullying prevention.
Awareness campaigns focusing on sexual offences and GBVF-related crimes were conducted in the Pixley ka Seme District. A drug awareness campaign was also held in Witdraai in the ZF Mgcawu District.
The provincial commissioner of the SAPS in the Northern Cape, Lieutenant-General Koliswa Otola, expressed her gratitude to all commanders, members, relevant stakeholders and the community for their contributions to the successes achieved.
