CRIME NEWS - The latest crime statistics released on Friday show that the Eastern Cape remains the most dangerous place to live in South Africa.
Yusuf Cassim, DA Shadow MEC for Community Safety, says the Eastern Cape is a province where lawlessness is becoming more brazen, violent, and organised and where government remains paralysed in the face of rising fear.
“Although the 4th quarter showed a slight decline, with 1 020 murders recorded between January and March 2025, the Eastern Cape still records the highest murder rate in the country at 15,4 per 100 000 people,” says Cassim.
“When combining the quarterly stats for the 2024/25 financial year, 4 804 people were murdered in the Eastern Cape.
"This is an average of more than 13 lives lost every day!”
The province also has six stations in the top 30 stations in terms of murder dockets opened, five of them in Nelson Mandela Bay, namely: Kwazakele (6th), New Brighton (8th), Motherwell (17th), Kwanobuhle (19th), and KwaDwesi (21st), with Mthatha (25th) completing the list.
In just three months, 34 multiple murder cases were reported involving 78 victims, which shows the levels of escalating brutality.
Sexual offences have shown a marginal decline, but the danger remains acute. The Eastern Cape has the highest rape rate in South Africa, with a ratio of 24,7 per 100 000.
Kidnappings on the rise
Kidnappings have increased by 6,3 percent, with 235 cases reported, including 13 incidents involving ransom demands. These figures reveal the growing confidence and coordination of criminal syndicates operating in our province.
Residential robberies are also on the rise, with 617 households targeted in just three months. Stock theft is up by 8,5 percent, with 1 628 cases reported. House and business burglaries also continue to surge.
Cassim says compounding the crisis is the ballooning number of cases marked “undetected” by SAPS. “This does not mean suspects were cleared or evidence dismissed. It means the docket was closed without an arrest, often because there were not enough trained detectives to investigate the case properly.”
Police bleeding detectives
Between 2016 and 2023, SAPS lost over 8 400 detectives, shrinking the national pool from 26 000 to just 17 600. That number continues to decline, even as violent crime intensifies.
“Earlier this month, I raised the urgent realities facing residents of the Northern Areas in Nelson Mandela Bay before the national Parliamentary Portfolio Committee of Police. Subsequently, their report has been adopted, and the Minister of Police is now obligated to act.
“Our demands include the urgent rebuilding of crime intelligence and investigative capacity, redeployment of experienced officers, and recruitment of new detectives into high-crime zones,” says Cassim.
Policing powers must be devolved
He says the DA remains committed to working with the police to reduce violent crime but that this is only possible through devolved policing powers, enhanced crime intelligence, and localised enforcement partnerships.
“The DA’s safety plan offers a practical, results-driven roadmap. It includes localised policing strategies that embed officers in the communities they serve; expanded forensic and intelligence capacity backed by technology and real-time data; specialised units focused on gang, drug, rural and GBV-related crime; and a complete overhaul of SAPS to ensure every officer is trained, accountable, and properly resourced.”
Cassim says the DA will again table a motion in the Eastern Cape Legislature demanding real investment in surveillance and crime-fighting infrastructure.
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