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What leads to murder?

In Gauteng, the contributing factors to the increasing murder rate are arguments, misunderstandings, provocation, and road rage.

You might want to think thrice the next time you feel like flipping the bird to some a**hole on the road in Jozi.

The crime statistics between 1 October and 31 December last year showed that 1,787 people were killed in Gauteng, reflecting an increase of 3.8% (66 counts) compared to the same period in 2022. Most alarmingly, of those people killed, 214 were women, while 55 were children.

The startling revelations were made by Gauteng’s new police commissioner, Tommy Mthombeni, on Tuesday before the Gauteng Provincial Legislature’s Portfolio Committee on Community Safety in Kempton Park, Ekurhuleni, City Press reported.

The analysis of a sample of 1,691 cases revealed that the top three contributors to the general increase in murder were arguments, misunderstandings, provocation and road rage by 185 cases, followed by robberies (house, business and street) by 154 cases and vigilantism by 84 cases.

He said the province had 65 dockets murder registered with 156 victims and that has contributed to more accumulated counts of murder during this quarter.

Image: SAPS

The incidents of multiple murders under review were mainly in De Deur and Diepsloot:

In De Deur, five African males from a taxi association were found lying on the ground lifeless with bullet wounds. Furthermore, there were six more African males who were rushed to hospital for medical attention and one succumbed to the injuries at the hospital. Three taxis and four vehicles were riddled with bullet holes. The case is still under investigation.

Five charred lifeless bodies were discovered on a pile of bricks in the early hours of Saturday near the CPF district office in Diepsloot, which Mthombeni explained happened after the individuals were allegedly chased, caught and tied before being ‘necklaced’. Five suspects have since been arrested and were remanded in custody.

According to Mthombeni, because October to December is typically the busiest time of the year with increased movement of people into and out of Gauteng, with an abundance of cash in circulation, the residents of Gauteng, holidaymakers, tourists and businesses alike often fall victim to opportunistic crime over the festive season.

Mthombeni said following the national launch of the Safer Festive Season Operations in October last year, “we mobilised maximum resources, including more boots on the ground, tackling crime on all corners of the province through the festive season and beyond”.

[source:citypress]