Johannesburg - A national operation by the security forces and the SA Police Service has netted 889 arrests, of which 745 were undocumented immigrants, police said on Monday.
“The National Joint Operational and Intelligence Structure (Natjoints) is happy with the successes of this past week’s Operation Fiela which rooted out criminal elements in seven provinces, resulting in 889 arrests,” Colonel Vishnu Naidoo said in a statement.
“A total of 745 people were arrested for being in the country without documentation. These individuals will be deported and handed over to officials in their respective countries.”
He said 414 people were arrested in Gauteng, 278 in KwaZulu-Natal, 125 in the Eastern Cape, 29 in the Free State, 24 in the Western Cape, 10 in the Northern Cape, nine in North-West since the start of Operation Fiela on April 27.
“The arrests are for various offences and of the 889 arrested, 13 were arrested for drug -related crimes, 13 for assault, four for murder, two for unlicensed firearm and ammunition,” Naidoo said.
Increased visibility of security forces has seen calm being restored in relatively violent areas such as Thabazimbi in Limpopo, Thembelihle in Johannesburg and Isipingo in KwaZulu-Natal, Naidoo said.
ANA