SAPS sends strong message with 181 arrests during Johannesburg CBD raid
The multi-disciplinary effort, spearheaded by the SAPS, was done in collaboration with several key agencies, including the departments of Home Affairs and Social Development, the JMPD, the Gauteng Traffic Police, CPF members, City Power and local patrollers.
ALSO READ: Over 1000 suspects arrested in Gauteng's weekend crime blitz
The operation began with a parade of all the participating units before teams dispersed across Joburg's CBD and Moffatview, targeting nine hijacked and dilapidated buildings previously declared unfit for human occupation.
Of the 181 arrests, 150 were of undocumented foreign nationals. Other arrests were for offences ranging from possession of drugs and unlicensed firearms to assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm and robbery.
The authorities inspected 11 liquor outlets during the operation, closing five for failing to comply with regulations under the Liquor Act.
Officers also confiscated an unlicensed firearm and ammunition, crystal meth and nyaope, liquor and an undisclosed amount of cash suspected to be from illicit activity.
ALSO READ: Bedfordview CPF strengthens fight against crime with new leadership
'All arrested suspects will appear in court today [July 7],' the SAPS confirmed in a statement.
Kubheka commended the seamless collaboration among agencies and reaffirmed the SAPS' commitment to reclaiming the inner city from criminal networks.
'These operations send a clear message: Johannesburg is not a haven for lawlessness,' she said.
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Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ These include the departments of health; agriculture; trade, industry and competition; social development; small business and development, the Presidency, and the SAPS. Yugen Pillay, chairperson of the Chatsworth Community Policing Forum (CPF), said despite the use of cannabis being decriminalised for private use, the public needed to remember that the sale of cannabis was still illegal. 'People are openly selling cannabis. The law regarding the sale of cannabis is quite clear. I have tried many times to get law enforcement to act on this, but they are still awaiting direction from their legal department. A directive that was unfortunately not forthcoming. 'It seems that the legal departments cannot decipher the legislation, and in the meantime, these stores are mushrooming all over. 'The use of cannabis can act as a gateway drug, and because it is so easily available, more and more people are using it. We are calling on the police to clamp down on these stores and start shutting them down," said Pillay. He said SAPS had issued a stern warning that the establishment of illegal dispensaries or outlets, online sites and social media platforms, which are marketing and selling cannabis and cannabis-related products to the public, remained illegal, except where specifically allowed in terms of the Medicines and Related Substances Act. 'Despite warnings, cannabis stores continue to open everywhere. Some of these illegal businesses, purporting to operate legally, are also being sold to members of the public as franchises authorised to deal in cannabis and cannabis-related products. 'Dealing in cannabis remains a serious criminal offence. Police are mandated to and will act, not only against businesses that sell cannabis illegally, but also against the customers who buy these products." 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Judge Pangarker ordered that the current station commander at Belhar SAPS investigate the circumstances and reasons why the complainant, who cannot be named, was not promptly assisted on or about October 15, 2019. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. 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Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Next Stay Close ✕ The estranged couple are parents of two minor children who now are in the care of family after the father was jailed and the mother, regretfully, finds herself back on the streets having again succumbed to her drug addiction. Enquiries to SAPS had not been answered by deadline. Judge Pangarker said the court had 'stepped beyond the traditional role as the appeal court because of the horror of the (man's) actions and the abject failure of police assistance when it was so desperately needed'. In the judgment, the judge ordered that after the station commander writes a report after their investigation and submit it to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), which should in turn then provide training to the personnel and police officers at Belhar police station on the proper and expeditious handling of rape, sexual offences and gender-based violence offences, and the treatment of victims and complainants of such offences. Judge Pangarker said the DPP may, if it deems necessary, enlist the assistance of the Commission for Gender Equality in respect of such training. 'The court was also concerned as to whether the complainant had received the necessary counselling for the trauma she suffered. Far too often victims of crime and women and children in particular, regretfully fall through the cracks of an overburdened criminal justice system when it comes to post-trial attention and ongoing counselling. We were gratified to be informed through the diligence of counsel for the State, that the complainant had received some counselling. '(The woman) of her own volition, expressed to the court that she hoped that this matter may help other victims of gender-based violence and rape, as she wished her story and experience to be heard. To the extent that we have taken this unusual approach to the matter, we hope that this judgment sends out a strong message that rape and gratuitous violence of the nature that the complainant faced, as do so many other women and children, are not taken lightly by the courts,' said Judge Pangarker. The conduct of the community, who ignored the woman's first plea for help when she approached a neighbour for assistance, was also lamented by Judge Pangarker. 'This brings me to the surrounding community and neighbours whose conduct featured in the trial. The first neighbour, who notwithstanding a desperate plea from a visibly bleeding and bludgeoned complainant who begged her for help, simply refused to assist her, explaining that she did not wish to become involved in what she regarded to be no more than a domestic squabble. 'Such attitudes may not be isolated and given the high and pervasive levels of violence in the Western Cape, some community members fear for their lives when aiding injured persons. Needless to state, the broader fight against gender-based violence is compromised by such complex realities. Moreover, the real fears harboured by neighbours and other community members and the reality of violence should not be underestimated nor ignored,' said Pangarker. Ilitha Labantu spokesperson, Siyabulela Monakali, said the judgment must serve as more than a footnote in legal history. 'Ilitha Labantu strongly condemns both the heinous gender-based violence perpetrated against the survivor and the gross negligence displayed by the Belhar police station. That a woman, bruised, traumatised, and seeking help, was made to sit in agony for over two hours without assistance reflects a staggering failure of duty by law enforcement. These are not just procedural oversights; they represent deep institutional shortcomings that routinely fail survivors of gender-based violence in South Africa. 'The survivor in this matter was doubly victimised, first by her estranged husband in a violent and brutal assault, and then by the very system meant to protect her. Such injustice is a direct consequence of a lack of urgency, care, and accountability within some arms of our criminal justice system,' said Monakali. He added that they do not believe a single round of training and an internal investigation are sufficient to remedy what has occurred. 'Training without enforcement, oversight, and a shift in institutional culture is inadequate. What happened at Belhar SAPS is not an isolated incident, it is symptomatic of a broader national crisis in policing responses to GBV,' said Monakali. He said the organisation over the past five years have proactively worked to close these gaps by offering GBV sensitisation and response training to SAPS stations across the Western Cape. Monakali said to date, Ilitha Labantu has capacitated nearly 100 police stations across various districts, recognising that many officers are not adequately trained to deal with the complexities of GBV-related cases. These trainings, accepted voluntarily by the police stations, are offered free of charge, and is done as part of their commitment to building a justice system that works for survivors. 'Survivors of gender-based violence are consistently encouraged by government, civil society, and the broader public to report incidents to the police as a vital step toward justice and protection. However, incidents such as the one at Belhar police station severely undermine those efforts. When survivors are met with delays, indifference, or secondary victimisation at the very institutions meant to support them, it discourages others from coming forward.'
