The SAPS report stated that all research conducted by the Crime Information Analysis Centre – now known as the Crime Research and Statistics component of Crime Intelligence – over the past decade has confirmed that about 70%-80% of murders, 60% of attempted murders, 75% of rapes and 90% of all assaults (whether GBH, common or indecent assault) involve victims and perpetrators who know one another (whether as family members, friends, acquaintances or colleagues).
Alcohol and, to a lesser extent, drug abuse frequently plays a role in these crimes.
The latest research indicates that roughly 65% of murders are associated with social behaviour and 16% are a consequence of other crimes (mainly robbery), while 12% and 7% respectively are committed in self-defence by law enforcers or victims of crime; or as a result of group behaviour such as vigilantism, gang wars and taxi-related violence.
Carjacking dropped by 6.8% compared to the previous period’s figure of +4.4%, and robbery at homes was up 1.9% compared to the increase of 13.5% in the previous period. These crimes occurred most often in the more affluent suburbs of Gauteng such as Sandton, Honeydew, Douglasdale, Brooklyn and Garsfontein.
The report says that most street robbers operate at street level in central business districts and megatownships, as individuals or in small groups. Most house robbers operate in small (two – three person) groups, often with a single firearm, selecting their targets on the basis of appearances (an impression that a target may offer rich pickings). They rob mainly between 22h00 and 04h00, because they want their victims present in order to open safes and/or hand over cash, mobile telephones or jewellery.
Business robbers can basically be divided into two categories. Most of them rob small and even unregistered businesses (e.g. spaza shops and shebeens), but also sometimes targeting medium-sized businesses. They steal mainly cash and mobile telephones.
Carjackers mostly differ from the groups above. They are usually part of hijacking syndicates or serve as suppliers to highly organised syndicates at a higher level of organised crime.
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