A total of 15 294 suspects were arrested for various crimes throughout KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) during the month of December with 256 and 274 nabbed for murder and attempted murder respectively.

KZN police spokesperson Colonel Robert Netshiunda said the Safer Festive Season Operations yielded good results in fighting the scourge of gender-based violence, with the arrest of 296 suspects for rape and crimes against women and children.

He highlighted that out of the total of 15 294 arrests, 5 158 were for contact crimes. “On cases of assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, which are mostly committed when the perpetrators are under the influence of alcohol, police arrested 2 525 suspects for the crime,” said Netshiunda.

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A significant amount of arrests were also made for driving under the influence with 1 117 motorists stopped in their tracks. “There were 304 people arrested for drinking in public space, 554 people were nabbed for being drunk in a public place and 887 people were arrested for illegal dealing in liquor. Fifteen people were arrested for the illegal distribution of liquor, whereas 26 people were arrested for illegal micro and macro manufacturing of liquor,” said Netshiunda.

A number of dangerous weapons were also removed from the streets. With most murders committed with the use of dangerous weapons such as firearms and knives, Netshiunda confirmed that police recovered 359 firearms, 3 195 ammunition and 769 knives. He added that 264 suspects were arrested for burglary at residential premises while 1 367 people were apprehended for drug-related crimes.

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