Crime Stats: Nearly 5000 South Africans were murdered in just three month
By
By Shaun Smillie and Siyabonga Mkhwanazi
In three months, 4 976 people were killed in South Africa as the country’s murder rate continues its climb after the brief respite brought on by the Covid 19 lockdown.
Murders, nationally, increased by 8,4 % fuelled in part by dramatic rises in the number of killings in the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal. In the Eastern Cape, the number of murders increased by 21,5 % from January to March 2020 to the same time the following year. KwaZulu-Natal saw an increase of 16,9% over the same period.
Gauteng’s murder rate increase was just under 4%. The Gauteng police station with the highest number of murders between January and March this year was Ivory Park, with 40 killings.