Locally, the current statistics highlight the increase in burglaries at non-residential premises (210), burglary at residential premises (622), theft of motor vehicles and motorcycles (560), theft out of or from motor vehicles (472) and drug-related crimes (408).
All thefts not mentioned elsewhere, which do not include property crime or carjacking, remain high at 1 433.
Commercial crime showed a slight decrease, from 553 to 541 arrests.
Capt Garon Sage, of the Boksburg North precinct, says the increase in arrests should be viewed in a positive manner, as it is indicative of a visible and successful police force.
When probed about the drug problem in the area, Sage admits that there may be a possible connection between drug dealers and some members of the police, but he encourages the public to report anything suspicious, so that the police may deal with the problem.
Kidnapping is an offence that has seen a great increase in arrests in the past year.
“Here again, we see a relation to drug dealers, who sometimes hold users who owe them lots of money, and the cases are reported by family members as kidnapping,” Sage says.
In response to crime in the area, the Boksburg North SAPS have a strategy plan in place that is aimed at targeting specific crimes in specific areas.
“We analyse crimes that take place on specific days, in specific time frames and areas, and then the station commander forms a task team that will concentrate on a specific crime in an area,” Sage explains.
“The problem is that the criminals then tend to move their base of operation; therefore the problem shifts areas, making it difficult to keep track of them,” says Garon.
However, he adds, that will not discourage the SAPS, but rather motivate them to find ways to pinpoint the culprits.
The highest number of reported crimes this past week involved the theft of motor vehicles.
According to Herman Heunis, chairman of Boksburg North CPF, community members need to start getting involved in the fight against crime.
“The one way to curb crime is for the community to get actively involved,” Heunis says.
