[Image: GoodFon]
Cape Town’s law enforcement didn’t just have a busy weekend – they had some skewed action movie play out in real-time.
A staggering 347 suspects were arrested, but the real highlight was a high-speed chase through Mitchells Plain that ended in a crash, bullets flying, and three suspects in cuffs.
It all kicked off in Tafelsig on Saturday when Metro Police officers, in the middle of a routine stop-and-search, clocked a vehicle linked to an earlier shooting. And just like that, things went from zero to chaos.
“A high-speed chase ensued, during which the occupants fired multiple shots at the officers. They returned fire and the suspects eventually crashed into a barrier on Duinefontein road, near the Jakes Gerwel bridge,” said safety and security MMC JP Smith.
“Three suspects were apprehended and officers confiscated two pistols — a 9mm Norinco Star with five live rounds of ammunition and a Glock 19 9mm pistol with an extended magazine and six live rounds — with their serial numbers intact.”
Officers also found 18 spent cartridges inside the vehicle. In case there was any doubt about what these guys had been up to.
Two of the suspects, aged 30 to 35, ended up with head injuries from the crash, receiving medical attention right there on the scene before being taken into custody. They’re now facing a grocery list of charges, including reckless and negligent driving, attempted murder, and illegal firearm possession.
But that was just one slice of the crime pie this weekend.
Metro police were everywhere, seizing drugs, weapons, and ammunition while the city’s public emergency communication centre fielded an eye-watering 1,599 calls—including 81 assault cases, 51 domestic violence complaints, and 51 vehicle-related accidents.
On the roads, Cape Town traffic services were out in full force, catching 31,664 speeding offences (seriously, slow down!) and issuing 29,096 fines. Plus, 240 more arrests for a variety of criminal transgressions.
Smith also dropped a reality check on the state of policing, saying that the city had made 1,670 arrests linked to illegal firearms “that we are tracking, yet we see the same people back on the street, having served no meaningful time in prison. We call on the national minister of police to urgently intervene and initiate an investigation around the influx of ammunition to gangs and vulnerable communities.”
Cape Town’s law enforcement is doing its job—but without real consequences for criminals, it’s like bailing water from a sinking ship.
[Source: TimesLIVE]
