Operation Shanela sees over 13k suspects arrested in a week
The South African Police Service said on Monday that more than 13,000 suspects were arrested this past week for different crimes throughout the country.
The arrests formed part of the Operation Shanela anti-crime initiative.
National police spokesperson Athlenda Mathe said the suspects included individuals wanted for murder, rape and business robberies.
In one of the incidents, police in Gauteng rescued 90 undocumented Ethiopian nationals from a human trafficking syndicate in Sunnydale Ridge, Johannesburg.
“A total of 4,065 wanted suspects for crimes such as murder, rape, possession of illegal firearms, and business robberies were arrested,” Mathe said.
“One hundred and six suspects were arrested for murder, and 150 suspects were arrested for attempted murder. One hundred and eighty-two suspects were arrested for rape; 80 of them were arrested in the province of KwaZulu Natal, 134 suspects were arrested for being in the illegal possession of firearms, and 66 of them were arrested in the Eastern Cape.
“Assault GBH continues to register a large number of arrests with 1,372 suspects arrested.
Mathe said 74 hijacked and stolen vehicles were also recovered during this week’s operations.
“Police will continue with their operations in stamping the authority of the state to ensure the safety and security of all people living in South Africa,” warned Mathe.
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