JOHANNESBURG — As police intensify their crackdown on violent and serious crime, South African Police Service (SAPS) National Commissioner, General Fannie Masemola, has urged criminals to surrender themselves when called to do so by police.
According to South African Government News Agency, during a media briefing on Thursday, the National Commissioner emphasized that police will continue to use proportional force when defending themselves and the communities they serve. He addressed concerns raised by citizens and experts regarding the number of suspects shot and killed by police in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) in recent months. “It is important to clarify that our mandate as the SAPS is to bring perpetrators to justice by arresting them. However, in pursuit of arresting these often dangerous and heavily armed criminals, our officers are frequently met with heavy gunfire, leaving them no option but to defend themselves and the communities they serve,” he said.
On Tuesday evening, SAPS members in KZN were tracing suspects linked to at least 13 cases of business robbery and car hijacking in the Cator Manor and Durban Central Policing Precinct when they were met with gunfire. Five suspects were fatally wounded, and no police officers were injured in the attack. Last week, KZN police shot and killed nine suspects in various incidents, all of whom were heavily armed. These suspects were wanted for serious and violent crimes, including murders and ATM bombings. In Kwadlangezwa, Empangeni, three suspects killed were linked to at least ten murder cases in the province.
Masemola reiterated the call for criminals to surrender to the police, stating, “We will continue to use force that is proportional to the threat.” As part of ongoing operations, police have arrested 766,237 suspects for various crimes, including 161,752 wanted suspects for priority crimes such as murder, cash-in-transit armed robberies, sexual offences, rape, car hijacking, and firearm-related offences.
The National Commissioner also emphasized the importance of police visibility in deterring crime, noting that 20,000 new police officers have been recruited and trained over the past two years, with 4,500 recruits currently in training and another 5,500 set to begin in January 2025. Collaboration with private security has also been effective in intercepting criminals. Additionally, police are investigating 95 Libyan nationals alleged to have received training at an illegal military camp in White River, Mpumalanga.