LEAP operations for August lead to over 500 arrests

Between 1 - 21 August 2022, Law Enforcement Advancement Plan (LEAP) officers have achieved the arrest of 515 individuals for a variety of crimes.

In this same time period, LEAP officers have amongst others:

• Searched 47 480 persons and
• Conducted 3 316 patrols in hotspot areas

Of the 515 persons that were arrested, 7 were for the possession of an illegal firearm, 10 for the possession of illegal ammunition, 6 for the possession of an imitation firearm, 329 for the possession of drugs and 48 for the possession of dangerous weapons. Confiscations and all other arrests occurred in the various areas where LEAP is deployed.

As LEAP officers work with a multitude of law enforcement agencies, they conducted 433 joint and Integrated operations with other City of Cape Town Law Enforcement Agencies and SAPS.

Minister Reagen Allen said: “By removing and confiscating these items, LEAP is ensuring that there are fewer causes of murder. LEAP is stepping up a lot more in their operations and functions, as National Government continues to fail SAPS officers on the ground. SAPS officers are constantly expressing their gratitude for LEAP, as it’s helping them to be more visible and effective in their crime fighting efforts. As a caring government, we want to ensure our residents live in safer environments and with dignity.”

LEAP officers stem from the Western Cape Government’s (WCG) Safety Plan, which was initiated in September 2019. The Safety Plan, which was the brainchild of Premier Alan Winde, came about as a result of the WCG’s commitment to address the high murder rate in the province. The primary aim is to reduce the murder rate by 50% by 2029.

These officers are deployed in a strategic, data-led and evidence-based manner to those locations where they can make the biggest difference in turning around negative crime statistics. This includes our top 10 murder areas in the Western Cape, such as Delft, Gugulethu, Harare, Khayelitsha (Site B policing precinct), Kraaifontein, Mfuleni, Mitchells Plain, Nyanga, Philippi East, and Samora Machel. Other high crime areas in which they are deployed are Atlantis, Bishop Lavis and Hanover Park, along with Lavender Hill, Steenberg and Grassy Park.

LEAP has already started incorporating information from the WCG’s Safety Dashboard. This dashboard is providing real-time data to provincial safety stakeholders and helps identify exactly where the LEAP officers are most required. The dashboard is updated every 3 days and is being automated to further provide daily updates. This strengthens our hand to anticipate where new hotspots may appear so that we can deploy the necessary resources to prevent crime and save lives. The Emergency Medical Services (EMS) data is set to be integrated with the Safety Dashboard, to provide us with a more complete picture of violence and trauma in the province, upon which we can launch our LEAP response.

Minister Reagen Allen added: “LEAP is operational proof why SAPS should immediately be devolved to a capable province and government such as ours. In fact, the 8,2% reduction in the murder rate for the 1st quarter of the 2022/23 financial year, at SAPS stations where LEAP is deployed, strengthens this. Our governance record at our schools, hospitals and so many other facilities under the governance of the Western Cape, speak for itself. Under us, SAPS will once again become a service that residents trust wholeheartedly.”

“LEAP would never be able to combat crime by themselves and besides working with SAPS and other law enforcement agencies including the City of Cape Town, the ears and eyes of the broader community are vital if we’re to create safer communities. I’d therefore like to urge all sectors of society to join us in the fight for a safer Western Cape,” concluded Minister Allen.