LEAP officers arrests 176 suspects in a week

The Western Cape's law enforcement advancement plan (LEAP) officers arrested 176 suspects last week.

The perpetrators were arrested for a variety of offences through the efforts of LEAP officers.

The department of police oversight and community safety stated that 91 were nabbed for being in possession of drugs, 22 for possession of dangerous weapons and the balance for various other offences.

The illegal firearms were confiscated in Delft, Gugulethu and Kraaifontein. The department stated that in seven days, the unit had conducted 8,540 searches on people while 395 houses and 955 vehicles were also searched. The unit also conducted 90 roadblocks.

The officers have been part of 12 integrated operations with other City of Cape Town law enforcement and 168 operations with SAPS were conducted, according to the department.

“Where LEAP is deployed, its impact against crime is being seen and felt by communities. This confirms why visible policing through boots on the ground is so important. Perhaps these successes will convince the national minister of police why additional resources are required and so well deserved,” said MEC for police oversight and community safety Reagen Allen.

Allen said the newly launched Safety Dashboard with its data and evidence, will help to further guide how and where the LEAP officers should be deployed.

“It will also guide us in terms of our violence prevention interventions.”

“I’d like to thank communities for their continued support and assistance to the LEAP officers. Their vigilance and reporting have ensured that perpetrators could be tracked and arrested. We’ll continue to rely on all our communities and the various volunteer structures if we’re to achieve greater success, and halve the murder rate by 2029,” Allen said.

 

Done By: Mitchum George