Non-existent police station security leaves residents without much-needed protection
18 May 2021
The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Gauteng is appalled that 29 police stations in Gauteng have recorded 136 break-ins and robberies in the last five years, raising great concern about the ability of SAPS to ensure the safety of residents, and that despite such a high number of criminal actions, there still remains a low conviction rate compared to the number of arrests made.
This information was provided in a reply to my written question to MEC for Community Safety, Faith Mazibuko, who indicated that from the 2016/17 financial year to the 2020/21 financial year, 136 cases of robberies and break-ins were opened and valuable items worth more than R1.6 million had been stolen.
Evaton and Vosloorus police stations have recorded the highest number of 16 robberies and break-in cases each, followed by Pretoria Central with 13 cases and Dobsonville with 10 cases, while other police stations have recorded below 10 cases.
Of these cases opened, only 41 arrests have been made with four resulting in convictions.