Lungile Ntimba
Statistician-General Risenga Maluleke said crime has increased in the 2023/24 period compared to the previous period with more than 1.5 million incidents of housebreaking affecting almost 1.1 million households reported for the 2023/24 reporting period.
Maluleke released the StatsSA’s Governance Public Safety and Justice Survey (GPSJS) on Tuesday and warned that male-headed households in metropolitan areas were more likely to be targeted.
He added that the incidents of housebreakings were more prevalent in June, September and in December.
The report revealed that home robbery ranks as the second most common crime affecting South African households, with 209 000 households being impacted.
Maluleke said theft of personal property remains the most frequently reported crime among individuals aged 16 and older, followed by street robbery and consumer fraud.
About 1.1 individuals experienced street robbery compared to the past five years. “We have gone up by 7%”, he said.
The numbers also revealed that about 700 000 individuals experienced consumer fraud in the past five years – an increase of 16% from the previous period.
The data showed that assault incidents among individuals have risen by 17% in the past 5 years.
While 22 000 more individuals had their cars stolen, which is an increase of 6% from 209 000.
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