JMPD keeps the peace during New Year festivities
04 January 2016
Festivities marking the dawn of the New Year went off without major unlawful incidents in Johannesburg at the weekend thanks to the joint operations carried out by the Johannesburg Metro Police Department (JMPD), South African Police Service, Emergency Management Services and Disaster Management Services throughout the city.
JMPD spokesman Chief Superintendent Wayne Minnaar also attributed the reduction in the number of unlawful incidents in Johannesburg to “a drastic improvement in behaviour. Joint operations over the years have seen a reduction in major incidents in Johannesburg, especially during New Year’s Day celebrations. Despite this general improvement, several arrests were made for a variety of infringements,” said Chief Superintendent Minnaar.
He said joint operations on New Year’s Eve in Hillbrow – one of the biggest hot spots – resulted in the arrests of nine suspects in connection with crimes such as assault, rape, possession of stolen cars and possession of dangerous weapons. “During the Hillbrow operation we also seized 12 packets of nyaope and closed down two liquor outlets because of non-compliance with licence conditions. This operation also saw six problematic buildings searched and several dangerous weapons, including knives and pangas, confiscated,” Chief Superintendent Minnaar said.
New Year’s Eve operations also resulted in 23 arrests for speeding along the N1 near Midrand and a further 12 arrests for drunken driving. “The JMPD High Speed Unit successfully apprehended several drivers for reckless and negligent driving on New Year’s Eve. The speeds captured ranged from 161km/h to 249km/h. High speeds recorded on New Year’s Eve paint a worrying picture,” Chief Superintendent Minnaar pointed out.
He said despite these arrests, the operations ran relatively smoothly. He added that a New Year’s party at Mary Fitzgerald Square in Newtown, which attracted thousands of revellers, went off without any major incidents, as did a fireworks display at Nugget Hill, prayer service at FNB Stadium and celebrations in Vilakazi Street in Orlando West, Soweto.
Parks such as Florida Lake, Rhodes, Little Falls and Zoo Lake were also heavily patrolled on New Year’s Day to ensure by-law compliance and improved safety and security for all park users.
Chief Superintendent Minnaar commended JMPD officers for their “tireless dedication” over the festive season period, especially in light of recent reports claiming officers were on strike. “JMPD management want to extend their heartfelt thanks to officers for their unwavering dedication and commitment to their work by not heeding the calls of unscrupulous [people] to embark on an illegal work stoppage. Management is ready and willing to discuss any grievances with officers and unions as per our open-door policy for negotiations,” he said.