SA policing meltdown exposed | 13.2 million cases still unresolved
Acting Minister Firoz Cachalia has revealed that over the past decade, more than 21 million criminal cases were opened, with 13.2 million closed without resolution, exposing a massive backlog in the police service.
Image: Ayanda Ndamane / Independent Newspapers
Acting Minister of Police Firoz Cachalia has revealed that over the past decade, more than 21 million criminal cases were opened in South Africa, with 13.2 million of these closed without resolution.
He disclosed this in a parliamentary reply to a question posed by Build One South Africa (BOSA) leader Dr Mmusi Maimane, who asked: “For each of the past 10 financial years, what total number of criminal dockets have been opened, solved, officially closed without resolution in each province, and how many are still open and under investigation by the South African Police Service?”
Cachalia explained that the figures for cases still under investigation for each financial year include dockets carried over from previous years and should not be aggregated to calculate a cumulative total.
“For example, the total of 1 909 625 shown for 2024/2025 includes dockets recorded in earlier years that remain under investigation,” he said.
He further clarified that some dockets officially closed without resolution can be reopened if new evidence emerges or if they were closed with a brought-forward date in subsequent years
“The totals for cases closed without resolution should not be added to derive a ten-year total, as dockets are sometimes reopened for further investigation,” Cachalia added.
Maimane said according to the data, 21.5 million criminal cases were opened over the past ten years, yet 61.7% were closed and unsolved.
This translates to 13.2 million unresolved cases, highlighting the strain on the police service in keeping up with rising crime levels, he said.
The overall clearance rate for criminal cases stands at just 37.5%, illustrating a system overwhelmed by both the volume of crime and a shortage of investigative personnel, he said.
Cachalia’s figures also reveal that Gauteng, Western Cape, and KwaZulu-Natal consistently record the highest numbers of criminal dockets, while provinces such as Limpopo and North West, though smaller in volume, still face high percentages of unresolved cases.
In the 2024/25 financial year alone, 1.9 million cases were still under investigation, while over 1.15 million cases were officially closed without resolution, highlighting the massive backlog facing the police.
Roger Solomons, BOSA spokesperson, described the statistics as a “damning indicator” of the police service’s challenges.
He said the shortage of trained detectives and under-resourced police stations was crippling the country’s ability to fight crime effectively.
“Earlier this year, BOSA revealed that the South African Police Service (SAPS) is operating with a national shortage of 2 344 detectives. This means thousands of criminal cases are going cold, with no follow-up investigations, no arrests, and no justice for victims,” Solomons added.
He warned that as more files pile up on detectives’ desks, criminals are not being brought to book and justice continues to elude victims.
“Crime is rampant and South Africans are paying the price for a police service that cannot cope,” Solomons said.
He outlined BOSA’s proposed solutions to the crisis, calling for the recruitment and training of 120 000 new police officers to expand station-level capacity, as well as increased funding and resources for effective crime prevention and prosecution, including doubling the National Prosecuting Authority’s budget to R10 billion to strengthen investigative and prosecutorial capacity.
Other interventions highlighted by Solomons include establishing regional and municipal police units to build community trust, modernising forensic capabilities through partnerships with private laboratories, and creating a national electronic forensic database to ensure critical evidence is analysed efficiently.
He also stressed the need to digitalise all criminal dockets to improve transparency and accountability, and to establish a National Criminal Investigation Directorate focused on pursuing the top 100 most violent criminals in the country.
The crisis is not new. Last year, in a parliamentary reply to the Democratic Alliance, the Police Ministry revealed that over 5.4 million case dockets had been closed without result since the 2018/2019 financial year due to insufficient evidence or leads.
Lisa Schickerling, DA deputy spokesperson on Police, highlighted that between 2018/2019 and 31 December 2023, thousands of violent crime cases had been closed without resolution, including 76 655 murders, 40 089 attempted murders, 141 026 cases of assault GBH, 256 162 aggravated robberies, 61 740 rapes, 5 523 sexual assaults, and 9 114 kidnappings.
She said the figures highlighted the urgent need for reforms.
“South Africans deserve a police service capable of protecting communities and ensuring that justice is served. The current situation is a clear warning that urgent reforms are needed to restore public confidence and safety,” Solomons said.
hope.ntanzi@iol.co.za
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