Alexandra recorded an 83% increase in trio crimes, which includes carjacking, house robbery and business robbery, during the first quarter of the 2025/26 financial year, marking the largest percentage jump of any police station in South Africa.
A year ago, Alexandra ranked 29th nationally for trio crimes. Today it sits 10th. The figures were revealed in the SAPS first-quarter crime statistics for the financial year, covering April to June 2026. Trio crimes at the station rose by 39 cases this quarter. Three years running – 2023, 2024 and 2025 – Alexandra posted the lowest trio crime counts of any station in the national top 30, at times nearly dropping off the list entirely. This year, it leaped toward the top of the list.

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Carjacking tells a similar story. Thirty-five more vehicles were hijacked in the precinct than during the same quarter last year, the highest count since 2023. Alexandra is now second only to Ivory Park in Ekurhuleni for carjacking in Gauteng, and ranks in the national top three.

Kidnapping cases climbed by 22 to 39 counts, Alexandra’s highest first-quarter tally since 2022, placing it 12th nationally and 10th in the province.

Other violent crime categories moved in the same direction. Robbery with aggravating circumstances rose by 62 cases, attempted murder nearly doubled, from 26 to 46, common assault edged up by eight to 203, though assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm dropped by seven to 134, and sexual assault remained flat at 11.

Mixed trends across other categories

Contact crimes overall dipped slightly, from 104 to 102 cases. Car theft, distinct from carjacking, actually fell by 42 cases, leaving Alexandra 26th nationally and 21st in Gauteng, well outside the danger zone. Firearm offences stayed low enough to keep the station off the national top 30 in that category, and malicious damage to property was unchanged at 102 cases.

Releasing the figures, the then acting police minister, Feroz Cachalia, avoided singling out Alexandra, but conceded the national picture was uneven. “The first-quarter crime statistics demonstrate that we are making progress in several critical areas. They also remind us that significant challenges remain. There can be no complacency. We are not yet where we want to be, but we remain determined, united and focused on getting there.”

Police explain root cause

Alexandra Police Station commander Brigadier Vusimuzi Ngubane confirmed carjacking is the main contributor to the steep increase in recorded trio crime counts. “We arrest suspects, but when they are in custody, you find that there are others still hijacking vehicles, using the same modus operandi,” he said.

Ngubane said police arrested three suspects from Vosloorus and two from Alexandra, in possession of hijacked vehicles, during the week ending August 30 in Alexandra. “You can see that they hijack and they have a buyer somewhere. There is a connection. Our crime intelligence has registered a network operation. They have identified the people who are removing trackers from the hijacked vehicles, and the markets where they are selling these vehicles and their parts.”
He said of the three categories included in trio crimes, house robberies and business robberies are not an issue. “Carjackings are the reason we see an increase in trio crimes, and the suspects are around Alexandra. That is what we are dealing with now,” he said.

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Shifting tactics in inner sectors

While London Road was initially identified as a hotspot and heavily patrolled, Ngubane said suspects have since shifted their operations to 8th Avenue, 9th Avenue and inner township sectors. “It is no longer London Road because they know that we are monitoring London Road. It is happening right inside sector 2 and sector 3,” Ngubane said. He added that while syndicates previously targeted victims at night, they have now begun operating during the day.

Ngubane explained that several kidnapping cases are directly linked to carjackings, as suspects abduct drivers to force banking app transfers before dumping the victim and vehicle in different locations.

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