Cape Town ramps up festive safety measures as arrests surge

Cape Town’s festive season safety operation has intensified, with hundreds of additional officers deployed and a string of arrests this week underscoring the City’s push to curb crime at tourism hotspots and in gang-affected communities.

Safety and Security Mayco Member JP Smith joined more than 200 cadets from the directorate’s Project 300 learnership programme on Wednesday, now deployed to Table Mountain, the CBD, Bo-Kaap and key beaches during the peak holiday period.

The cadets have completed municipal peace officer training, granting them traffic, by-law enforcement and crime-prevention powers.

The rollout builds on the City’s broader staffing expansion under Project 1000, which resulted in close to 900 new Metro Police and Law Enforcement officers joining the ranks.

“2025 has been an exceptional year in terms of growth. Not since LEAP have we seen this level of investment in our staffing complement,” Smith said. “Along with the NSOs, Law Enforcement’s bolstered escort unit and the additional N2 resources, we have also been able to promote many long-serving and deserving Metro Police members.”

Smith said the festive deployment was designed to boost visibility while developing capacity. “Apart from increasing visible policing this festive season, the cadets will also gain valuable experience walking the beat. These types of initiatives are only possible because of our incredible Metro Police College.”

Although the latest crime statistics are outdated, they show that the Cape Town Central Police precinct continues to record high levels of petty crime, including pickpocketing, car break-ins and robberies — offences that pose a direct risk to tourism and the local economy. Additional enforcement in the CBD has been welcomed by external partners.

“Table Mountain and our amazing beaches generate billions in economic stimulus and create crucial employment for thousands of our residents,” Smith said. “We must safeguard these assets to ensure our city remains an attractive destination for visitors, both locally and internationally.”

A series of arrests this week reflects the stepped-up enforcement. Metro Police K9 units assisted in the arrest of a suspect found with 216 units of crack cocaine concealed behind a vehicle dashboard following a stop in Manenberg.

In another operation near Greenmarket Square, City enforcement officers shut down an illegal foreign-exchange operation targeting tourists, arresting two suspects and confiscating large quantities of local and foreign currency linked to unlicensed trading.

In Wynberg, officers acting on intelligence about a planned hit on a court witness intercepted a vehicle carrying seven occupants.

The suspects were arrested after officers recovered prohibited firearms, ammunition, dangerous weapons and narcotics, with investigations indicating possible links to known gangs.

Traffic enforcement has also been ramped up. A rapid operation along the N2 resulted in multiple arrests for driving under the influence and more than 100 traffic offences being recorded in just two hours.

The City stressed that festive safety extends beyond tourism nodes. Daily patrols continue in gang-affected areas including Kleinvlei, Grassy Park, Steenberg, Elsies River, Delft, Nyanga, Khayelitsha and Mitchells Plain, supported by nearly 700 Metro Police Neighbourhood Safety Officers and ongoing LEAP deployments.

“We are acutely aware that Cape Town is under the microscope at all times,” Smith said. “We therefore have to take the appropriate steps; too many people rely on this sector to feed and clothe their families.”

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