Durban – KwaZulu-Natal police arrested a total of 8 550 persons for various crimes in April.
Police spokesperson Lieutenant-Colonel Nqobile Gwala said: “A total of 2 186 arrests were made for contact crimes. The contact crimes arrests include 224 arrests for murder, 81 for robberies, 209 for rape, 992 for assaults, 12 for carjacking and 2 099 for stock theft.”
Gwala said that the arrests were made when police embarked on a number of multidisciplinary operations targeting a variety of crimes taking place in different communities. The operations were put in place strategically to combat crime in all districts across the province.
“Police also recovered drugs such as heroin, mandrax powder, cocaine and dagga. During this period, 611 suspects were arrested for liquor-related offences. Police seized 255 illegal firearms with 3 350 various rounds of ammunition in operations during the same period. All firearms seized have been subjected to ballistic testing to determine if they were used in any other crimes in the country,” Gwala said.
She said police management in KZN commended the diligence and persistence of police officers as many of the arrests were effected during a period when the province had experienced a natural disaster.
“During this period, police and security companies intercepted many criminal groups as they were prowling the streets with the intention of committing crimes,” Gwala said.
Police urged citizens to continue to provide tip-offs to police on criminal activities by contacting their local police stations as well as Crime Stop on 08600 10111 or via the MYSAPS app.
Daily News