By KEDIBONE MOLAETSI
5 August 2026 – More than 16 684 suspects were arrested for various offences as part of ongoing efforts to combat and prevent crime through the nationwide Shanela Operation, carried out between 20 and 26 July 2026. The police said during this period, they also conducted immigration enforcement operations, resulting in the arrest of 1 869 illegal migrants, with Gauteng recording the most arrests, at 795.
The national police spokesperson, Lieutenant Colonel Vincent Mukhathi said in addition, detectives arrested 2 547 wanted individuals linked to violent offences, including murder, attempted murder, rape, carjackings, illegal possession of firearms and house and business robberies. Mukhathi said this week, amongst those arrested is a popular traditional healer from KwaMashu in Kwazulu-Natal for allegedly orchestrating the murders of African National Congress Youth League (ANCYL) member Thamsanqa Kingdom Gcabashe and eThekwini Metro Police officials, Lindokuhle Madonsela and Ndumiso Thusi.
“On 25 July 2026, the police arrested an alleged mastermind (37) behind the murder of the Democratic Alliance (DA) candidate councillor, Sinovuyo Dyokwe, following a joint intelligence-driven operation involving the Western Cape Serious Violent Crime Investigation (SVCI) detectives and the Special Task Force (STF) in Parklands.
“Operation Shanela continues to send a strong message that crime and lawlessness will not be tolerated in South Africa, whether committed by locals or foreign nationals. The multidisciplinary operations yielded significant arrests,” he said.
Mukhathi further said 114 suspects were arrested for attempted murder. He added that the majority of arrests were recorded in Gauteng with 26, followed by the Eastern Cape with 24.
“More than 106 suspects were arrested for attempted murder, 152 suspects were arrested for rape, while 101 suspects were arrested for illegal possession of firearms. The Western Cape arrested 38 suspects, followed by Gauteng with 20. More than 534 suspects were arrested for possession of dangerous weapons, 660 suspects were arrested for illegal dealing in liquor and 230 suspects were arrested for dealing in drugs.
“More than 2530 suspects were arrested for possession of drugs. The province of Western Cape recorded the highest number of arrests at 1 314. More than 1383 suspects were arrested for assault GBH and 715 for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs,” said Mukhathi.
He said 128 unlicensed firearms seized, including handguns, shotguns, and rifles. Mukhathi said 2296 rounds of ammunition were also seized.
“Contraband goods worth more than R46 million were seized, including various types of drugs and 55 hijacked and stolen vehicles recovered. On 25 July 2026, Bloemfontein Flying Squad intercepted a white Volvo Stralis 430 truck on the N1 near Glen, suspected of transporting stolen copper cable.
“Centlec technicians confirmed some of the seized cables as company property, while Telkom and Eskom later identified additional cables worth over R300 000. A driver (43) was arrested and charged under the Criminal Matters Amendment Act for tampering with essential infrastructure and possession of stolen property. He will appear in the Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court soon,” he said.
Mukhathi said in Richwood, Bothasig, crime intelligence arrested a a suspect (29) at an apartment used as a gang storage facility. He said the police seized seven pistols, 17 magazines, 1 030 rounds of ammunition and assorted drugs valued at R10 million. He said a suspect (40) from Ebony Park was arrested by the Ekurhuleni Task Team, where nine unlicensed firearms (including five AK-47s), rounds of ammunition and four stolen vehicles (Mercedes Benz, BMW, two VW Polos) were recovered.
The Guardian 