Briefing to the Portfolio Committee for Safety and Security. Friday, 11 April 2003

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Briefing to the Portfolio Committee for Safety
and Security.Friday, 11 April 2003

• STRATEGIC FOCUS OF THE SOUTH AFRICAN POLICE
  SERVICE
• 2002 to 2005

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Background

• In 2000, top Management of the South African
  Police Service (SAPS) implemented an Integrated
  Strategic Plan which was primarily aimed at
  organized and serious and violent crimes, by
  focusing on
• Crime syndicates involved in crimes relating to
  drugs, firearms and vehicles
• Corruption and
• Commercial crime

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• The proliferation of firearms and the extent to
  which they were used to commit murder, armed
  robberies, heists and hijackings
• High-crime areas
• Inter group violence, including political
  violence, taxi and train violence, gang violence,
  faction fighting, as well as flashpoint areas.
• In order to give effect to the Integrated
  Strategic Plan, the South African Police Service
  had to re-evaluate its approach to investigate
  methods and its capacity.

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• In the past, the South African Police Services
  specialized units investigated organized crime,
  serious and violent crime and commercial crime in
  a fragmented fashion. For example, the Vehicle
  Crime Investigation Unit - vehicle crime, the
  Firearm Investigation units - crimes relating to
  firearms, while the Fraud units investigated
  fraud.
• This approach had the following disadvantages
• A reactive approach was adopted in responding to
  reported crimes (as apposed to an approach to
  investigate the syndicates involved in crimes)
• Investigating officers did not share information/
  intelligence
• The organized fashion of crime was often ignored
• Functions and duties relating to investigations
  within the various units were often duplicated
• Payments for information/intelligence to
  informers were at times duplicated

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• There were also several other shortcomings that
  had a negative impact on the effectiveness of
  investigations and the level of services
  rendered, namely
• The way in which units were placed (in that they
  were geographically not placed in close proximity
  of major threats)
• Skewed resource allocation and low productivity
• The susceptibility of staff to corrupt practices
• Disempowerment of local level policing (functions
  that could best be performed at local level, were
  performed by specialized units)
• A lack of transformation in the specialized units
  (with special reference to the composition of
  these units)

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• It was therefore decided to combat organized
  crime, serious and violent crime and commercial
  crime by adopting an integrated,
  intelligence-driven approach directed at crime
  syndicates and countering the organized crime
  threat.
• The process of implementation had to be
  structured in such a way that it enhanced and
  strengthened the capacity of investigating
  officers in the South African Police Service at
  local level to such an extent that they could
  investigate and combat crime effectively.

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Approach

• The procedure followed to establish the
  aforementioned integrated approach, entailed
• The creation of multi-disciplinary units with a
  view to effectively investigate
• Organized crime (by using syndicate-based
  intelligence and analyses of the organized crime
  threat)
• Serious and violent crime
• Commercial crime
• Crimes against women and children
• The establishment of Provincial Organized Crime
  Secretariats.

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• Streamlining of functions performed by
  specialized investigation units
• Implementation of a vetting/selection procedure
  for investigating officers attached to the above
  units regarding security clearances, educational
  qualifications and personality analyses
• Creation of new units to clamp down on corrupt
  officials involved in organized crime (as opposed
  to incidents of corruption in general)
• Optimal use of staff and physical resources in
  terms
• of
• Operational needs
• Priorities
• Cost-effectiveness
• Productivity and
• The equitable placement of resources

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• Ensuring public confidence in detective units
  (units must be acceptable and have credibility in
  the eyes of the community)
• In practice, the implementation of this process
  entailed the gradual phasing out of most of the
  specialized investigation units.
• The functions of the closed units are
  incorporated into those of the organized crime
  units, serious and violent crime units,
  commercial branches, FCS units and the local
  detective units.
• As the process unfolded, however, it became clear
  that the Detective Service could not be
  restructured overnight, which resulted in the
  adoption of a phased approach.

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• The above phases are as follows
• Phase one (concluded)
• The identification of specialized units that had
  to be closed
• Establishment of organized crime and serious and
  violent crime units and/or increasing the
  capacity of such units.
• Phase two (concluded)
• Evaluation of established organized crime and
  serious and violent crime units
• Establishment of additional organized crime and
  serious and violent crime units.
• Establishment of commercial branches.
• Phase three (to be concluded)
• Evaluation and closure of remaining specialized
  units (Please note, however, it is envisaged that
  Stock Theft, and if deemed necessary, other units
  dealing with cross-border crimes, will continue
  to exist)

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Communication/Consultation

• Extensive communication and consultation between
  the following parties have taken place since
  2000
• SAPS Top Management (Management Forum, Provincial
  Management)
• Officers and employees of the SAPS
• Organized Labour at national and provincial level
• National and local media

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• Portfolio Committee on Safety and Security
• Standing Committee on Public Accounts (SCOPA)
• Joint Monitoring Committee on the Improvement of
  Quality of Life and Status of Children, Youth and
  Disabled Persons
• Banking Council
• Agricultural Fora/Farmers associations
• Institute of Security Studies
• Business Against Crime

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Status of the implementation process

• Before the restructure of the Detective Service
  began in 2000, there were 534 specialized units
  in the Detective Service, comprising of -
• The Narcotics Bureau (SANAB)
• The Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual
  Offences Unit (FCS)
• Commercial Crime Unit
• Fraud Unit
• Syndicate Fraud Unit

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• Serious and Economic Offences Unit
• Organized Crime Unit
• Serious and Violent Crime Unit
• Theft in Transit Unit
• Stock Theft Unit
• Vehicle Crime Unit
• Murder and Robbery Unit
• Diamond and Gold Unit
• Anti-Corruption Unit

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• 270 units have been closed since the
  implementation of the new integrated approach.
• The SA Narcotics Bureau, Anti-Corruption and
  Murder and Robbery Units are some of the units
  that were recently identified as units that will
  be closed during Phase 3 of the restructuring of
  the Detective Service.
• The latter phase came into effect during the
  implementation of Resolution 7/2002 and the South
  African Police Services Resource Establishment
  Plan for the financial year 2002/2003.

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• The following specialized units exist
• FCS 51
• Commercial Branch 17
• Serious Economic Offences 1
• Organized Crime 26
• Serious and Violent Crime 29
• Stock Theft 63
• Gold and Diamond 13
• Sub-Total 200

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• Specialized Investigation Support (Vehicle Crime
  Non-investigative functions)
• Vehicle Identification 46
• Vehicle Safeguarding 17
• Sub-Total 63
• Total 263

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Successes A New Approach

• The following are examples of successes achieved
• since the new approach was adopted (SAPS Annual
• Report 2001/2)
• 21 undercover operations, during which 230 crime
  syndicates were exposed and 85 syndicate leaders
  prosecuted. Altogether 1 834 suspects were
  arrested for their involvement in crime
  syndicates and 343 members of organized crime
  syndicates were prosecuted.

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• Successes achieved during investigations into
  organized crime syndicates by the Commercial
  Branch included 1 935 arrests. The estimated
  value of goods seized from arrested persons
  amounted to more than R80 million.
• Drugs valued at about R1 140 million were seized
  during the investigation of drug-related crimes.
• Items to the value of about R16 million were
  confiscated during the investigation of crimes
  relating to endangered species.
• Altogether 51 986 vehicles were recovered during
  the investigation of crimes relating to vehicles.

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Conclusion

• The Detective Service is in the final stage of
  reorganization to bring it into line with the
  integrated approach adopted by the SAPS.
• Its aim is to ensure integrated policing through
  multi-disciplinary interventions, under one
  operational management structure.
• All efforts will be aligned - not only within the
  SAPS, but also with the relevant clusters of the
  Criminal Justice System.

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Conclusion - continue

• The focus of the crime-combating operations will
  therefore be on crime syndicates rather than on
  certain crimes only.
• THE END