By Sihle Mlambo 
13m ago
Johannesburg – More than 26 of the 30 police stations with the most cases of driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs can be found in Gauteng, the latest quarterly crime statistics show.
The crime statistics for January to March this year show a steep decline of more than 55% in arrests for driving under the influence (DUI), with 8 583 people arrested during the period.
In the same period last year, 2019 and 2018, more than 19 000 people were arrested, while in 2017 just over 16 000 people were arrested.
Police Minister Bheki Cele and Police Commissioner General Khehla Sitole presented the quarterly crime statistics, in Pretoria on Friday afternoon.
The crime stats show that Gauteng motorists were the biggest culprits for DUI offences, accounting for 19 of the top 20 offending suburbs in the country.
The police stations with the most incidents were Germiston, Tembisa, Kempton Park, Tsakane and Kagiso.
Top 20 DUI areas
Germiston, Gauteng
Tembisa, Gauteng
Kempton Park, Gauteng
Tsakane, Gauteng
Kagiso, Gauteng
Springs, Gauteng
Randfontein, Gauteng
Vosloorus, Gauteng
Katlehong, Gauteng
Midrand, Gauteng
Norkem Park, Gauteng
Tembisa South, Gauteng
Johannesburg Central, Gauteng
Ivory Park, Gauteng
Mamelodi East, Gauteng
Honeydew, Gauteng
Sebokeng, Gauteng
Eldorado Park, Gauteng
Thohoyandou, Limpopo
Middelburg, Mpumalanga
Rounding off the top 30 police stations was Eastern Cape’s Madeira police station, KZN’s Newcastle police station, Mooinooi in the North West, Knysna in the Western Cape, along with Gauteng’s Sunnyside, Krugersdorp, De Deur, Alberton, Tokoza and Vereeniging police stations.
“Crime detected as a result of police action is usually not reported to the police, largely dependent on the deployment of law enforcement personnel and employment of intelligence,” the crime stats noted.
“The crime is usually recorded after the apprehension of suspects in connection with following offences: illegal possession of firearms and ammunition, drug-related crimes, driving under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs, and sexual offences detected as a result of police action.”
The crime stats, however, do show a significant reduction in drunk driving arrests, which could be attributed to the pandemic, as the police station with the most arrests, Germiston, had 159 arrests from January through March, while Knysna, the station with the 30th most arrests, had 45 arrests in the same period.
By province breakdown, Gauteng had the lion’s share of the arrests, accounting for more than 44% of the total DUI arrests.
DUI arrests by province
Gauteng – 3824
Western Cape – 968
KZN – 944
Limpopo – 796
Eastern Cape – 610
Free State – 600
Mpumalanga – 388
North West – 367
Northern Cape – 86
IOL
Credit IOL