Port Elizabeth suburbs among province’s danger spots

Three Port Elizabeth suburbs — Bethelsdorp, New Brighton and Motherwell — have been identified as being among the most dangerous places to live in the province.

The New Brighton police precinct made the top-five list for murder, attempted murder, robbery with aggravated circumstances and contact crimes and is the second-highest in the province after Kwazakhele for carjacking, robbery at residential premises and robbery at non-residential premises.

This is according to the provincial crime statistics which were discussed during a virtual media briefing by transport, safety and liaison MEC Weziwe Tikana-Gxothiwe and Eastern Cape provincial commissioner Lt-Gen Liziwe Ntshinga on Friday.

Mthatha again took the top spot in the province for murder and sexual offences, while Bethelsdorp ranked at the top for attempted murder.

Motherwell made the top-five lists for murder, robbery with aggravated circumstances, contact crime and for carjacking, robbery at residential premises and robbery at non-residential premises.

Between April 2019 and March, there was a decrease of 2,2%  — 3,965 in 2019 to 3,879 — in the total number of murder cases but there was an increase of 104 counts for attempted murder from the 2,305 cases in 2019.

Kwazakhele also appears in the top 10 for murder, and number three for attempted murder in the province.

The three areas are in the top 30 for sexual offences.

Rape cases have slightly decreased, although the number is still high at 8,708 cases reported in the province.

Other provincial stats include:

• Attempted sexual offences up by 2,1% to 396 from the previous year’s 388;
• Sexual assault cases in 2019 were at 890; the figure is now at 896;
• Carjackings have increased by 6%; and
• Zero bank robberies between 2019 and 2020.

In the province, commercial crimes increased by 15,3% to 8,396.

Tikana-Gxothiwe zoned in on gender-based violence and said it had terrorised most households and communities as most of these crimes happened behind closed doors.

“As the Eastern Cape we are still a long way away from where we need to be,” Tikana-Gxothiwe said.

“However, we welcome the minimal decline in that category of crime [murder cases]. It is certainly a step in the right direction.

“Awareness campaigns on gender-based violence and femicide must be intensified.

“Private sector and gender activists’ organisations must work together with the government to defeat the scourge and expose perpetrators in this regard.

“Despite a few stubborn pockets of areas in the Eastern Cape, such as Mthatha and Port Elizabeth [policing precincts] in particular, the province has seen a sizeable decline in murder cases overall and we welcome that — we aim to build on that.”

She also touched on stock theft, saying the province had now become the livestock theft capital in the country.

“If the national statistics say that a total of eight in the top 10 stations where this crime is prevalent in the country are in the Eastern Cape, it’s hard to argue against those numbers.

“Ours is to ensure that being the livestock theft capital is not a title we wear for long.”

HeraldLIVE