Festive season police operations led to the arrest of 236 887 individuals, with 32 318 suspects having been wanted for various crimes ranging from murder to car hijackings, National Police Commissioner General Fannie Masemola said.
“Since the official launch of these operations in October last year, SAPS [South African Police Service] members have worked tirelessly, day and night, through October, November, December and into January, deploying decisive crime prevention, crime combating and crime investigation actions across all nine provinces,” the Commissioner said at a media briefing in Pretoria on Friday.
During the period from 15 October 2025 to 31 January 2026, the police conducted 7,726 high-density operations throughout the country. Of the arrests made, 4029 suspects were nabbed for murder and attempted murder, while 2693 suspects were arrested for rape and attempted rape. A total of 4281 drug dealers were also arrested during this period.
“The majority of those arrested during this festive period were those arrested for being in possession of drugs, bringing the total of those arrested for drug possession to 33397 suspects,” said the Commissioner, adding that a high number of drunken drivers were held.
A total of 15075 drunken drivers were arrested. The arrests were made in collaboration with all Metro Police, Provincial, and National Traffic Police.
A total of 2498 people were arrested for selling alcohol without a valid license.
Meanwhile, more than 2000 firearms were seized during this period, with KwaZulu-Natal recovering most of the firearms with 753 recoveries, followed by the Western Cape with 607 and the Eastern Cape with 343. Gauteng also recovered a sizeable number of firearms with a total of 264 illegal and unlicensed firearms.
During the festive season period, a total of 2738 accused persons were convicted to time in prison, including 199 accused persons who were sentenced to life imprisonment. Fifteen accused persons were sentenced to 40 years and more, while 29 accused persons were sentenced to 30 years and more. A total of 237 accused persons were sentenced to 20 years and more imprisonment, and 910 accused persons were sentenced to 10 years and more imprisonment, while1348 accused persons were convicted to a period between five and nine-years imprisonment.
Masemola said SAPS members went beyond the call of duty, often under challenging and demanding conditions, to disrupt criminal networks, remove illegal firearms and dangerous weapons from communities, and bring perpetrators of serious crime to book.
“These operations were not only about enforcing the law, but about restoring calm, strengthening community trust and contributing to a stable environment in which economic activity and investment can thrive.
He said safer communities and business confidence are inseparable, and the work delivered during the festive season demonstrates the SAPS’s central role in safeguarding both.
“Importantly, these gains were achieved while the organisation continued to operate under intense public scrutiny, including ongoing commissions of inquiry, parliamentary processes, and ad hoc oversight mechanisms within the broader security cluster.
“Our focus remains clear and undiluted to serve and protect the people of South Africa,” Masemola said.
In addition, the SAPS has launched an aggressive capacitation of the detective environment in a bid to strengthen its case resolution rates.
“We have, since the beginning of the year, contracted 264 detectives who left the service in good standing. Last year, we also welcomed back 200 more detectives who are already working hard to tackle cases. We are confident that this ongoing strategy of bolstering our detective capacity will go a long way in ensuring those who harm others and commit heinous crimes are brought to book,” said the Commissioner.– SAnews.gov.za
