[imagesource:westerncapegov]

Cape Town’s highly-trained ‘K9’ crime-fighting dog unit has a whole bunch of really good boys.

The City of Cape Town has reported an increase in the amount of drugs confiscated, in large part thanks to these smart sniffers.

The city’s K9 unit was formed in 2009 ahead of the Fifa World Cup, training the dogs to detect narcotics and explosives, and the ability to sniff out missing people, as well. Recently, the police added four dogs to the 12-member K9 unit, saying that the dogs have played a significant role in the fight against crime and drug trade in particular.

“It really is something to watch our K9s in action,” JP Smith, the city’s executive head of safety and security, said on Sunday via SowetanLive.

“They have added so much value to our fight against crime, and the drug trade in particular, over the past 15 years, and I look forward to seeing how the new recruits acquit themselves.

“They have big paws to fill, when you consider the likes of Savage, Troy and Xena, who were just a few of the legendary K9s in our kennels over the years,” Smith said.

Djenko is one of four new members of the City of Cape Town’s acclaimed K9 unit.

Image: SAPS

The City said that the K9 Dog Unit is responsible for 70,000 drug busts and over 9,000 arrests in the current financial year alone, per EWN.

Between July 2023 and March 31 2024, the city’s metro police and law enforcement departments witnessed a marked increase in the amount of drugs confiscated.

Arrests by both departments increased from 7,494 to 9,328 in the past financial year compared with the previous year, while the units of drugs confiscated increased from 48,178 to 69,852 in the same period.

The municipality said though it doesn’t have the power to go after the powerful drug dealers, it will continue to rid its streets of the small-time drug traffickers.

“We have seen a marked increase in the amount of drugs confiscated by our enforcement agencies, but while the numbers are impressive, the city’s role in cutting down to size the drug trade remains limited. All arrests and confiscations are handed over to the South African Police Service for investigation and prosecution.”

Smiths mentioned that alonside their crime-fighting abilities, these dogs were among the best brand ambassadors, and were instrumental in building relationships between the enforcement services and communities.

[source:sowetanlive]