Western Cape police ramp up presence in Cape Flats amid rising violence

The Western Cape police have increased their presence at identified hotspots in the Cape Flats in response to recent shooting incidents.

Lieutenant Colonel Malcolm Pojie said the additional deployments from members of the Anti-Gang Unit, Tactical Response Teams, Operation Lockdown II, Operation Restore, and Public Order Police have descended on identified locations on the Cape Flats from Sunday to carry out operations, including roadblocks, raids, tracing operations, search and seizures, and stop and search operations.

“The intervention follows incidents where murder and attempted murder cases registered indicate a spike in shooting incidents that saw a significant number of individuals shot in Mitchell’s Plain, Bishop Lavis, Philippi, Ravensmead, and Elsie’s River,” Pojie said.

Appeal for communities to report crime

The police have appealed to affected communities to report crime occurring in their communities.

Pojie added that the SA Police Service (Saps) is on high alert and determined to restore calm with other law enforcement agencies such as the Cape Town Metropolitan Police Department, Law Enforcement Advancement Plan (Leap) officials, and scores of community volunteers.

The Saps said a significant number of illegal firearms and large quantities of rounds of ammunition have been confiscated, with suspects arrested weekly because of ongoing operations.

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“Recently, capacity at the provincial anti-gang unit was enhanced by 47 members, and an additional 100 members from Operation Lockdown II came from other provinces to assist in reducing serious violent crimes in Cape Town. In a coordinated manner, armed with intelligence, they execute operational actions where it is most required,” Pojie said.

Suspect apprehended on Sunday

On Sunday, a 50-year-old suspect was apprehended by officers deployed in Elsies River, and rounds of 509mm ammunition and over 400 mandrax tablets were confiscated.

During the operation, the officials, however, came under attack from community members, and shots were fired. The police confirmed that the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) was investigating the matter.

Meanwhile, earlier on Monday, at around 8.45am, members of the Lentegeur Detectives Serious and Violent Crimes Unit conducted patrols in the Woodlands area to quell the ongoing gang violence in the area.

“The member accosted and searched a group of suspected gang members and found an unlicensed firearm, 16 rounds of ammunition, 18 and a half mandrax tablets, and an amount of cash on one of the suspects,” Pojie said.

The suspect was arrested and will appear in the Mitchells Plain Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday for charges related to the unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition, and drugs.

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