Cape Town - There were among 118 suspects arrested by the City’s Traffic and Metro Police Departments for various offences during special operations in the last week.
During an operation in the Athlone and Mitchells Plain area last night, the Ghost Squad arrested seven drivers for reckless and negligent driving and three for driving under the influence of alcohol.
Three of those arrested were also charged with participating in an illegal street race.
Officers also issued fines to five unlicensed drivers, one for failing to wear a seatbelt, two unlicensed vehicles and two fines for disobeying red traffic lights.
"Illegal street racing continues to be a big concern for us. Driving at high speed under any conditions seldom ends well, as we saw earlier this year, but to behave in this manner in the atrocious weather conditions that had set in during the time of the operation, speaks to a complete lack of common sense and regard for the lives and safety of others," said tMayco Member for Safety and Security, JP Smith.
Elsewhere, the Cape Town Traffic Service arrested 81 motorists for drunk driving, three for outstanding warrants and one for the possession of drugs during roadblocks in Green Point, Melkbosstrand, Kraaifontein, Manenberg and Nyanga.
They also impounded 78 public transport vehicles – 67 of them sedan taxis – for operating without licences or in contravention of their operating licences.
The Metro Police Department arrested 11 motorists for drunk driving and 12 suspects for possession of drugs and stolen property, as well as robbery, amongst others.
On Tuesday, May 14 2019, officers on patrol in Philippi caught three cable thieves in the act along Stock Road. They found them in possession of a hammer, panga and copper wire. The suspects were detained at Philippi East police station for further investigation.
"Our staff continue to make good arrests on a daily basis, for crimes that pose a serious risk to public safety, but that also have economic consequences not often fully appreciated. The difficulty is that we have no hand in the prosecution of those suspects. Arrests alone do not act as a deterrent. We need strong convictions and well-publicised ones at that, if we have any hope of effectively reducing our crime rate," added Smith.