24 children killed during level 5 of lockdown in Eastern Cape

A total of 24 children were killed in the Eastern Cape during level 5 of the Covid-19 lockdown, according to the latest quarterly crime statistics released by safety and liaison MEC Weziwe Tikana-Gxothiwe on Thursday.

The data, released during a virtual media briefing with provincial police commissioner Lt-Gen Liziwe Ntshinga, indicates that crimes against children from April 1 to June 30 this year increased by 12.3% compared to the same period last year.

There was a 26.3% increase in the killing of children during that period.

Common assault on children jumped by 16.1%, with a total of 130 children assaulted during that period, reports DispatchLIVE.

Sexual offences against children also shot up 14% after 601 children were sexually assaulted.

Meanwhile, rape cases also soared by 19.2% after 496 children were raped during the same period.

There were 154 cases of assault with the intent to inflict grievous bodily harm, an 8.5% increase from last year during the same period.

Crimes against women also soared, with 95 women killed in the second quarter of the year. The data showed that most of these victims were killed by their partners.

DispatchLIVE