LEAP Officers arrest over 1400 between April and July

Between 4 April 2022 and 3 July 2022, Law Enforcement Advancement Plan (LEAP) officers have been tackling crime head-on in the 14 police precincts where they are deployed.

These officers are deployed where they can make the biggest difference in turning around negative crime statistics, including in our top 10 murder areas in the Western Cape. This includes 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, and recently Lavender Hill, Steenberg and Grassy Park.

These placements are strategic and backed by evidence and data. For a number of years, Nyanga’s been known as the murder capital of South Africa. In fact, between the 2010/11 financial year, up to 2018/19, Nyanga topped the list where the most murders occurred in the country. Backed by this data and evidence, the first LEAP deployment in 2020, became a priority for this area.

LEAP has made significant inroads in the area and for the first time in a number of years, Nyanga had a reduction in its murder rate for four consecutive quarters during the entire 2021/22 financial year. Gugulethu who was a regular on the list of top 30 murder stations across the country is no longer there. These, along with other successes are directly linked to the strategic deployment of LEAP officers.

LEAP has also started incorporating the Western Cape Government’s recently launched Safety Dashboard. This dashboard is providing real-time data to provincial safety stakeholders and helps identify exactly where the LEAP officers are mostly 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 - before lives are lost. The Emergency Medical Services data will also be integrated with the Safety Dashboard, to provide us with a more complete picture of violence and trauma in the province.

During 4 April 2022 – 3 July 2022, LEAP officers have amongst others:

• Searched 108 227 persons

These searches helped ensure that 1 491 persons could be arrested. Thirty-five were for the possession of an illegal firearm, 46 for the possession of illegal ammunition, 24 for the possession of an imitation firearm, 1 177 for the possession of drugs and 209 for the possession of dangerous weapons. Confiscations occurred in the various areas where LEAP is deployed.

As LEAP officers work with a multitude of law enforcement agencies, they conducted 1 736 Integrated operations with other City of Cape Town Law Enforcement Agencies and SAPS.

Minister Allen said: “The consistent efforts of the LEAP officers and being the extra boots on the ground, demonstrates the importance of visible policing. This is one of the most effective methods in combatting crime, particularly murder, which is the primary focus area of the LEAP deployment. The confiscation of the various weapons ensures that fewer people could potentially be harmed by guns, while the removal of drugs helps ensure that our people do not get addicted to illicit substances that leads to various crimes, including committing murder.”

“I’ve heard and seen in many communities how requests are made to deploy LEAP in their areas. These requests clearly shows that LEAP is visible and having an impact in crime prevention and detection. We have a long way to go, especially since our ultimate goal is to reduce the murder rate by 50% by 2029,” added Minister Allen.

“LEAP would never be able to combat crime by themselves and serves as a force multiplier to the SAPS and other law enforcement agencies. I’d therefore like to urge all sectors of society to join us and create safer communities. By doing this and continuing to work together, we’ll be able to achieve greater success,” concluded Minister Allen.

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