Cape Town - The City’s Law Enforcement Department is finalising the destruction of 11 000 litres of alcohol that was confiscated between 2 December 2018 and 9 May 2019.
The destruction is the final step in the alcohol impoundment process, but is also necessitated to make space in the liquor storage facility for the predicted increase in alcohol confiscations this summer.
Already, between 1 and 15 December, City enforcement staff confiscated 2 339 bottles of alcohol, amounting to 1 379,84 litres. This excludes the tally for impoundments on Reconciliation Day, which is the first ‘priority’ day in terms of festive season enforcement.
"Odds are the number will increase fairly significantly once the updated tallies are in. Also, with more people on leave now, the beaches and public spaces will be even busier, and the liquor storage facility will fill up too. Our law enforcement staff had a rough time this past weekend, with several incidents of riotous behaviour where officers attempted to confiscate liquor," said Mayco Member for Safety and Security, JP Smith.
"Our message to these louts is simple – you might think there is safety in numbers, until you get arrested for assault and interfering with an officer executing his duties and spend the festive season behind bars."
The City’s Law Enforcement Department is finalising the destruction of 11 000 litres of alcohol that was confiscated between 2 December 2018 and 9 May 2019. Picture: City of Cape Town/Supplied
When alcohol is confiscated, the owner receives a R500 fine, as well as a receipt outlining exactly what items were confiscated. The liquor is then booked in at the Law Enforcement impound facility, where the owner can reclaim their goods upon payment of the fine and a R650 impoundment release fee.
If the items are not collected after three months, the City’s policies make provision for the destruction of the alcohol.
"I want to bust the myths from the outset – our staff do not confiscate alcohol for their personal gain. There is a rigorous process involved in the confiscation of alcohol, so the detractors can just stop already. Secondly, we can’t sell the alcohol, because it is too arduous a process.
"We looked into it several years ago. I wish people would spend as much time and energy denouncing the actions of those who abuse alcohol and make life unpleasant for everyone else, as they do on what happens to confiscated alcohol," added Smith.
