Mthatha Central Police Station had the second-highest rape cases reported nationally, and the highest in the Eastern Cape, between October and December of 2023. This is according to the latest provincial crime statistics for the third quarter of the 2023/2024 financial year.
The concerning revelation in these statistics was released by Eastern Cape Community Safety and Liaison MEC, Xolile Nqatha, and Eastern Cape Police Commissioner, Lieutenant General Nomthetheleli Mene, in Mthatha last week, February 29.
Two more police stations that fall under the OR Tambo District also feature in the national top 30 stations with highest number of reported rape cases for the same period.
These are the Lusikisiki Police Station, which stands in fourth place nationally and second in the province, and Libode Police Station which is placed fourth in the province and 29 nationally.
Under the same district, Mthatha Central Police Station is also placed number one in the province when it comes to registered murder cases, and 13th nationally, while the Libode Police Station features in sixth place in the province, and 22nd nationally, for murder cases.
Lusikisiki Police Station is seventh in the province and 27th nationally for reported murder cases.
The latest statistics also place with Mqanduli Police Station at the top nationally and provincially on cash-in-transit heist cases, while seven police stations under the OR Tambo District appear in the top eight provincially for stock theft cases.
The seven stations are Qumbu, Mthatha, Tsolo, Libode, Bityi, Mqanduli, and Sulenkama.
Giving a keynote address at the third quarter crime statistics release, Nqatha called on police to double their efforts in dealing with sexual offences and murder cases.
“Crimes against women and children in the Eastern Cape continue to be of great concern. We must double our efforts to reduce rape and murder cases to take our police stations out of the Top 30 nationally on these serious offences,” Nqatha said.
He also touched on the alleged extortion syndicate targeting business owners in Mthatha, saying that the Directorate for Priority Crimes Investigation (DPCI), also known as the Hawks, was leading an ongoing investigation into the matter and had already collected statements from business owners through the assistance of the business fraternity.
“During the first quarter we managed to decrease nine of the 17 priority community reported crimes. In the second quarter we managed to decrease 12 of the 17 priority community reported crimes, and during the third quarter we managed 10 out of 17 community reported crimes.
“This clearly indicates that we are on the right track in terms of focusing on our hotspot areas,” said Mene.
She conceded that OR Tambo District remained a crime hotspot district, especially on serious crimes such as murder and rape, saying that they will intensify their efforts through targeted strategies to arrest the situation.
The latest crime statistics are in comparison with the same period in the previous financial year.
