Crime in Cape Town CBD drops by 35%

Crime incidents in the Cape Town CBD have dropped by 35% year-on-year from January to mid-September, according to statistics released by the Cape Town Central City Improvement District (CCID). 

The CCID’s safety and security 24-hour control room recorded 773 incidents from Wednesday, January 1 to  Monday, September 15, this year, compared with 1186 during the same period in 2024.

One of the most significant decreases was in credit card fraud and scamming, which dropped by 56%, from 116 incidents last year to 51 this year.

“This is very positive as card swapping is a huge concern, not only in the CBD but in neighbouring precincts and other tourist-heavy areas across Cape Town,” said Jurie Bruwer, CCID safety and security manager.

Other categories showing improvement included general theft, which dropped by 66% (from 80 to 27 incidents), cell phone theft, down 65%, armed and business robberies down 50%, and theft out of motor vehicles down 36%. 

Shoplifting also decreased by 27%.

Not all categories followed this trend; drug possession cases rose sharply from 83 to 407 incidents, while drinking-and-driving incidents more than doubled, from 14 to 32 cases.

With support from police and City Law Enforcement, the CCID reported 366 arrests for possession of illegal substances.

The CCID attributed the overall decline to strategic deployment of its public safety officers and mobile units combined with joint operations with police, City Law Enforcement, the traffic department, and the City’s camera surveillance unit.

Mr Bruwer said up to 100 joint crime-prevention operations are conducted each week.

The Cape Town Community Police Forum (CPF) chairman, Marc Truss, said they had also observed a decrease in reported crime in the CBD.

CPF representatives credited an “organised and strategic approach” built on partnerships between police, CCID, private security companies, and the CPF itself.

“The reduction is a result of force multipliers – a true partnership. From robbery and theft out of vehicles to business robberies and house theft, we’ve seen noticeable improvements. It all comes down to an organised, unified fight against crime,” said Mr Truss.

He said that the CPF plays an active role in sharing information between stakeholders to prevent scams and card-swapping incidents.

He said that continued collaboration will be key to sustaining safety levels for residents, businesses, and tourists.

“With pooled resources between all role players, we can ensure a safer environment where our visitors, residents, and businesses can enjoy our city,” said Mr Truss.

Cape Town Central police did not respond to several enquiries from the CapeTowner by the time this article was published.