By Lebone Rodah Mosima
The Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) registered 116 cases of rape involving police officers in 2025/26, including 72 allegedly committed by officers while on duty, according to its latest annual figures.
The rape cases formed part of 332 gender-based violence and femicide-related (GBV-F) cases recorded by IPID during the financial year, as the watchdog registered 5,259 cases of alleged police misconduct overall.
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IPID said the number of rape cases involving police officers had risen from 95 in 2024/25 to 116 in 2025/26. Of those recorded in the latest year, 44 allegedly involved off-duty police officers and 72 involved officers who were on duty.
The figures were released after Police Minister Firoz Cachalia tabled IPID’s 2025/26 Annual Report in the National Assembly on Wednesday.
Among the 332 GBVF-related matters were 122 referrals, mainly involving domestic violence, as well as 116 rape cases, 58 assault and torture cases, 24 murders and 10 cases involving the discharge of an official firearm.
KwaZulu-Natal recorded the highest number of GBVF-related cases at 60, followed by Gauteng with 58 and the Free State with 52. The Eastern Cape and Northern Cape each recorded 27 cases.
At police station level, Kimberley in the Northern Cape and Mariannhill in KZN recorded seven GBVF-related cases each, followed by Madadeni in KZN with six.
Phoenix in KZN, Humewood in the Eastern Cape and Welkom in the Free State each recorded five cases.
Overall, assault and torture remained the biggest drivers of IPID investigations, accounting for 3,468 of the 5,259 cases registered during the year.
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Another 669 cases involved the discharge of an official firearm, while 464 involved deaths as a result of police action.
The Western Cape recorded the highest overall number of cases at 905, narrowly ahead of Gauteng with 898. KZN recorded 722 cases and the Eastern Cape 717.
IPID said it secured 84 criminal convictions during the financial year, up from 43 in the previous year. Sentences ranged from several months’ imprisonment to life sentences.
Twenty-six of those convictions were linked to GBV-F cases.
“IPID is guided by the principles of independence, thoroughness, accountability as well as the quality and integrity of its investigations,” spokesperson Lizzy Suping said.
IPID investigators also made 281 arrests during the year.
By March 31, 2026, 994 cases were enrolled before courts following IPID recommendations to the National Prosecuting Authority to institute criminal proceedings against police officers.
The South African Police Service also concluded 277 disciplinary recommendations referred by IPID, with sanctions ranging from written warnings to dismissal.
Cachalia told Parliament that effective policing depended on legitimacy and public trust, and said IPID played a critical role in professionalising the police through impartial investigations.
