Crime Stats: Leap areas show murder declines, increased gun and drug confiscations
28 August 2026
Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis says Quarterly Crime Statistics again show promising signs of City policing efforts to support SAPS in areas impacted by gang, gun and drug crime. Murder declined in each of the six precincts with dedicated LEAP deployments, with increased firearm and drug detections also evident.
Of the Top 30 Stations for murder nationally, 50% of those which showed year-on-year declines are LEAP areas in Cape Town. The biggest declines were recorded in Delft (-24%), Gugulethu (-34%), and Mitchells Plain (-33%).
‘Violent crime remains far too high, but we do take some encouragement from declines in murder in LEAP deployment areas. We are also seeing increased firearm and drug confiscations which our City officers are helping to achieve in support of SAPS.
‘City police take around 400 illegal guns off the streets each year, but the conviction rate is just 5% due to a broken criminal justice system. This forces our officers to police the same offenders over and over, and is a key reason why Metro Police should have investigative powers to build winnable case dockets for gang, gun and drug crime.
‘We must make full use of all policing resources in Cape Town as SAPS are under severe pressure and really do need our Metro Police’s help to gain more convictions. Unfortunately, we’ve not had the urgent cooperation hoped for from the Police Minister, which has forced us to lodge an intergovernmental dispute for more metro policing powers.
‘For the sake of communities living in daily fear of crime, the time has come to “catch and convict”, which our officers stand ready to do in support of SAPS and the NPA,’ said Mayor Hill-Lewis.
Alderman JP Smith said City officers were increasingly showing their mettle in the fight against crime.
‘Murder dropping in all six of the areas where our LEAP officers are deployed alongside SAPS can, in part, be attributed to the City and Province focusing resources into these areas in late 2024, and the hotspot policing project the City is rolling out in areas like Gugulethu, Nyanga and Delft among others.
"This proves that, with increased resources, data driven policing and embracing the role of technology in policing, you can make a difference.
'During the period under review, the City’s enforcement services arrested 5 541 suspects. They took 65 firearms off the streets, 33 imitation firearms and 797 rounds of ammunition. Officers also confiscated well over 25 000 units of drugs.
'We have systematically invested in, and built up our enforcement services over numerous years, and we’ve seen gradual reductions in gang violence across most of our precincts,’ said Alderman Smith.
Minister yet to fulfil constitutional obligations
Mayor Hill-Lewis said earlier this week that Acting Minister Cachalia was yet to fulfil constitutional obligations to engage the City promptly on its intergovernmental dispute for more metro policing powers to investigate crime.
‘Following a month of silence from the Minister, I have again written to him offering new dates to convene our dispute mediation. We are acting urgently on behalf of communities with the goal of getting the Minister’s agreement to amend his SAPS Act Amendment Bill currently before parliament - this is a simple practical way to expand metro policing powers,’ said Mayor Hill-Lewis.
Acting Minister Cachalia claimed to have an “open mind” on investigative powers for Metro Police, making these remarks recently before parliament’s Police Portfolio Committee.
‘Section 205 of the Constitution says that the SAPS Act must establish a framework for policing powers and functions to be discharged by a police service in the local government sphere “where this is appropriate”.
‘We have demonstrated, over and over, that it is indeed appropriate here in Cape Town – that our Metro Police are prepared, resourced and ready to take on investigations for specific crimes.
‘The dispute mediation is an opportunity to put the residents of Cape Town first and find a good faith solution that avoids the courts,’ said Mayor Hill-Lewis.
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