Story audio is generated using AI
Cape Town mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis has criticised what he described as a “catch-and-release” approach by the criminal justice system, raising alarm over low conviction rates for gang, gun and drug-related crimes and calling on the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) to take a tougher stance against repeat offenders.
The mayor’s remarks come as the City of Cape Town says its metro police make more than 2,000 drug-related arrests every year and participate in more than 1,000 drug raids, yet many suspects are released on bail and return to the streets.
On Monday, Hill-Lewis attended proceedings in the Mitchells Plain magistrate’s court involving a 31-year-old alleged drug dealer arrested by metro police in April after officers allegedly found him in possession of tik.
“The city’s metro police arrested the suspect in possession of 30 packets of tik in Mitchells Plain on April 9. He was granted R3,000 bail after hours by the standby prosecutor, without a hearing before a magistrate and without opposition from SAPS or the NPA. It later emerged that the suspect had previous cases of murder and assault,” Hill-Lewis said.
He personally witnessed the arrest and expressed disappointment that the case was again postponed.
“It is disappointing that today [Monday] the matter was postponed for a second time until August 14, with the NPA failing to ask the court to impose any restrictions on the suspect’s bail. The NPA and SAPS’ practice of catch-and-release is not acceptable to communities living in fear of gang, gun and drug crime.”
Hill-Lewis reiterated his call for metro police to be granted investigative powers, arguing that their current mandate limits their ability to help secure successful prosecutions.
“With investigative powers, metro police could help build stronger case dockets to support the under-resourced SAPS and prosecutors and seriously disrupt the drug trade that fuels violent crime and gangsterism,” he said.
Mayoral committee member for safety and security JP Smith echoed the mayor’s concerns, saying metro police officers repeatedly arrest the same offenders because cases fail to result in convictions.
“Our officers recover illegal narcotics, make arrests and hand suspects over to the relevant authorities, only for the criminal justice system to fail to secure convictions. This forces city agencies to repeatedly police the same offenders,” Smith said.
“If metro police and law enforcement had the authority to go a step further and build the case docket, we could get more gangsters off the streets and significantly disrupt the drug trade that fuels violent crime and gangsterism.”
TimesLIVE
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.