The Western Cape Community Safety Minister, Albert Fritz, has called for greater integration between the police, SANParks and the SANDF on intelligence gathering and sharing to fight crime more effectively.
This follows an incident which occurred in the Table Mountain National Park, near Hout Bay on Saturday, when a Ukrainian tourist was fatally stabbed and robbed of his belongings.
Fritz says the incident was a result of crime displacement in which criminals have relocate as a result of increased policing and the deployment of the army to the areas where they usually operate.
His spokesperson Cayla Ann Tomás Murray explains, “Minister Fritz said, I condemn in the strongest terms the murder of the Ukrainian tourist yesterday in Champman’s Peak, wish his family the deepest condolences during this difficulty time and call on the police to urgently apprehend each criminal involved in the attack. We cannot allow crime to threaten the well-being of citizens, tourism and the economy. Cape Town remains open for business and tourism.”
Gangsterism
Meanwhile, a 6-year-old boy has been shot and wounded after he was caught in the crossfire between rival gangs in Mitchell’s Plain.
The latest shooting comes amid the deployment of the army to the Cape Flats to curb rampant crime and gangsterism.
Western Cape police spokesperson, Andre Traut, says the boy has been taken to hospital. He says no arrests have been made. Police are investigating the circumstances surrounding the shooting incident.
