Brooklyn, Temba and Mamelodi East are among the Pretoria policing precincts that recorded some of the highest levels of serious and violent crime in the country, according to the latest police crime statistics for the first three months of 2026.

Minister of Police Firoz Cachalia said the crime data revealed notable provincial disparities and stubborn hotspots.

“While Gauteng, the Western Cape, Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal all recorded notable decreases in murders, these four provinces recorded over 80% of all murders in South Africa.

“But the risk of being murdered differs vastly across the country. To establish the relative risk, we look at the murder ratio, that is, the number of murders per 100,000 people nationally and in each province.”

Cachalia furthermore said that the statistics also reveal that, for too many of our people, the home, where we should be safest, is a dangerous place. 1,523 murders occurred in the residences of the perpetrator or victim.

“Violence in South Africa is not only about strangers attacking strangers. It is about partners, relatives, neighbours, and acquaintances. It is driven by arguments, jealousy, road rage and other interpersonal conflicts. In this quarter alone, 898 murders were triggered by arguments  and misunderstandings, a further 251 were motivated by retaliation, revenge or punishment, and 299 murders resulted from vigilantism.

“This is a sobering truth: if we want to reduce violent crime, we must confront the culture of violence inside the home, the mistaken idea that men must be violent to be respected or that women must put up with violence to be loved.”

Here are five Pretoria policing precincts that recorded some of the highest levels of serious and violent crime:

1. Brooklyn Policing Precinct

National ranking: 21st for community-reported serious crimes in South Africa

• 1 359 serious crimes recorded in three months
• Includes areas such as Brooklyn, Hatfield, Menlo Park and surrounding eastern suburbs
• Crimes include robbery, assault, theft out of motor vehicles and burglary

2. Temba Policing Precinct

National ranking: 16th for violent contact crimes

• 685 contact crimes reported
• Includes murder, attempted murder, rape and aggravated robbery
• Remains Tshwane’s most violent policing precinct according to SAPS figures

3. Mamelodi East Policing Precinct

National ranking: 20th for contact crimes

• 673 violent crimes recorded
• Includes assault GBH, robbery and sexual offences
• Continues to rank among Gauteng’s major violent crime hotspots

4. Pretoria Central / CBD Policing Precinct

While Pretoria Central itself does not appear directly in the Top 30 tables, the broader inner-city crime corridor linked to the Tshwane metro remains a major concern due to:

• robbery
• theft
• contact crimes
• vehicle-related crime

The CBD remains one of the busiest policing environments in Gauteng.

*This article was updated on 30 May 2026 to clarify that the crime statistics referred to are SAPS policing precinct statistics and not rankings of individual suburbs. The SAPS precincts referred to cover broader geographical areas that may include multiple suburbs and communities.

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