• Murder rate drops by 11% in the third quarter but house robberies and assaults rise.

• Nelson Mandela Bay still leads in serious crimes despite overall decline across districts.

Crime in the Eastern Cape is showing mixed results, with murder, rape and aggravated robberies dropping, but assaults and house robberies on the rise.

Acting provincial police commissioner Major General Zithulele Dladla said the latest stats show police are working hard to fight crime across the province.

The second- and third-quarter crime statistics were released by Community Safety and Transport MEC Xolile Nqatha at St Albans Correctional Centre in Gqeberha on Wednesday.

Between 1 July and 31 December 2024, the province recorded 41,246 serious crimes in the second quarter — a drop of 4.5% compared to the previous quarter. However, two of the eight districts still recorded an increase.

Nelson Mandela Bay, which contributed 23.4% of all crimes, saw a 7.1% drop. Buffalo City Metro, however, had a 1.3% rise, while the OR Tambo District saw a small 2.4% drop.

Despite the overall decrease, Nelson Mandela Bay had the highest number of murders and kidnappings.

Police stations in KwaZakhele, New Brighton, Kwanobuhle and Motherwell had the most murders — and ranked among the country’s top 30 murder hotspots.

The worst stations for serious crime were East London, Mount Road, Mthatha, Humewood and Cambridge.

Some crimes went up — attempted murder jumped by 9%, house robberies by 14.9%, and murder by 0.2%. But sexual offences dropped by 6.4%, business robberies by 9.1%, and aggravated robberies by 3.4%.

Mthatha, Lusikisiki, Mbizana, Dutywa and East London had the highest rape cases.

In the third quarter, crime dropped again by 4.5% year-on-year. Five districts improved, with Nelson Mandela Bay seeing a 13.5% decline. But Buffalo City Metro went up 1.2% and OR Tambo 0.4%.

Murder dropped by 11%, aggravated robberies by 20.7%, and business robberies by 34.2%. But house robberies rose 5.1%, common assault 6.5% and assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm by 0.8%.

The worst rape hotspots remained Lusikisiki, Mthatha, Mbizana, Libode and East London.

“These statistics are not just numbers — they represent the lived experiences of our communities,” said Dladla.

He said police are responding to calls for more resources, noting the opening of Majola Police Station in OR Tambo — the 200th station in the province.

MEC Nqatha welcomed the decline in murders and sexual assaults but said more needs to be done.

“We can’t relax. We must keep fighting crime,” he said.

He also promised to tackle extortion in troubled districts, saying special police units are already deployed in OR Tambo.

Pictured above: Community Safety and Transport MEC Xolile Nqatha speaking at the release of the Eastern Cape crime statistics on Wednesday.

Image source: SAPS EC Communications