A reply to a DA Parliamentary question reveals that the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) cannot track whether SAPS arrests for illegal firearm possession lead to prosecutions or convictions. This is because SAPS’ crime records and the courts’ case management systems are not linked and many arrests are never properly recorded in the first place.
Between January 2020 and December 2024, Western Cape SAPS reported 13 727 arrests for illegal firearm possession. Yet only 1 745 cases ended in convictions, while 1 897 were struck off the roll, with no record of the reasons.
The NPA has admitted that cases are often withdrawn due to incomplete investigations or poor-quality evidence.
In a province where gang violence regularly claims the lives of children in their homes and on their way to school, this is no “minor administrative issue”. SAPS is effectively fighting crime blindfolded, and gangsters know it.
The failure to track arrest-to-conviction data allows offenders to slip through the cracks and return to the streets within days.
The DA regards this as an urgent priority for Acting Police Minister Firoz Cachalia. He now needs to prove that he is willing and able to take the decisive action SAPS so desperately needs. This must include:
- A clear timeline for integrating SAPS and NPA systems;
- Measurable targets to improve firearm conviction rates;
- A plan to fix the broken detective training pipeline;
- Immediate measures to ensure quality investigations; and
- Steps to trace and stop the flow of illegal firearms into gang hotspots, including auditing dealers’ registers.
Without urgent reform, the revolving door of gang violence will keep spinning. This failure is yet another reason policing powers must be devolved to the Western Cape.