Elsies River Precinct
How much crime was reported in the Elsies River precinct?
The Elsies River SAPS precinct recorded 5,197 crimes in Apr 2025–Mar 2026, up 9.1% vs Apr 2024–Mar 2025.
Latest quarter (Apr–Jun 2026): 1,281 crimes, up 9.8% vs Apr–Jun 2025 (1,167).
Largest categories
Whole-precinct figures, reported crime only, raw counts. Source: SAPS quarterly crime statistics (saps.gov.za), Apr 2025–Mar 2026.
What this data can't tell you
How we handle these →Where within the precinct. SAPS reports one figure for the whole area; all 6 suburbs share it.
Unreported crime. Only crime reported to police is counted, so real incidence is higher.
Crime per resident. Raw counts, no population adjustment — the trend is the steadier signal.
View 6 suburbs in this precinct
All these suburbs share the same crime statistics because SAPS reports data at precinct level.
Reported crimes
5,197
Apr 2025–Mar 2026 · Full year
vs pre-COVID baseline
↓ 9%
below 2018-2019
Updated · SAPS Q1 2026-27 release
Crime breakdown
Top reported offences in 2025-2026, with change vs Apr 2024–Mar 2025
| Crime category | Reported count | Change vs Apr 2024–Mar 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Drug-related crime | 1,137 | +359 |
| Common assault | 704 | +81 |
| Malicious damage | 537 | -37 |
| All theft not mentioned elsewhere | 493 | +13 |
| Common robbery | 392 | +102 |
| Crimen injuria | 357 | -18 |
| Serious assault | 256 | 0 |
| Aggravated robbery | 240 | -20 |
| Carjacking | 21 | |
| Truck hijacking | 2 | |
| Robbery at residential premises | 5 | |
| Robbery at non-residential premises | 5 | |
| Robbery of cash in transit | 0 | |
| Bank robbery | 0 | |
| Components of aggravated robbery above, already counted in that total. Not additional crimes. | ||
Crime over time
Reported crimes per SAPS financial year, by category
Crime trend by year
Dashed: Apr–Jun 2026 only (1 of 4 quarters published) — a partial year, not comparable with the full years before it.
Hollow points with dashed lines indicate years with fewer than 4 quarters of data — those totals may be lower because SAPS has not released every quarter.
Over the past decade, crime here has fallen.
The numbers behind that — recent years vs earlier years, averaged to see past a one-year spike
Over ~5 years
↑ 3.1%
avg 23/24–25/26 vs avg 18/19–20/21
Over ~10 years
↓ 26.6%
avg 23/24–25/26 vs avg 13/14–15/16
View full crime breakdown table
| Category | 2025-2026 | 2024-2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Drug-related crime | 1,137 | 778 | +359 |
| Common assault | 704 | 623 | +81 |
| Malicious damage | 537 | 574 | -37 |
| All theft not mentioned elsewhere | 493 | 480 | +13 |
| Common robbery | 392 | 290 | +102 |
| Crimen injuria | 357 | 375 | -18 |
| Serious assault | 256 | 256 | 0 |
| Aggravated robbery | 240 | 260 | -20 |
| Carjacking | 21 | 26 | -5 |
| Truck hijacking | 2 | 5 | -3 |
| Robbery at residential premises | 5 | 11 | -6 |
| Robbery at non-residential premises | 5 | 19 | -14 |
| Robbery of cash in transit | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bank robbery | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Components of aggravated robbery above, already counted in that total. Not additional crimes. SAPS reports these both individually and within the aggravated-robbery figure. | |||
| Commercial crime | 231 | 255 | -24 |
| Theft from vehicle | 166 | 201 | -35 |
| Attempted murder | 116 | 121 | -5 |
| Residential burglary | 104 | 97 | +7 |
| Illegal possession of firearms and ammunition | 93 | 77 | +16 |
| Shoplifting | 75 | 68 | +7 |
| Murder | 74 | 92 | -18 |
| Vehicle theft | 54 | 52 | +2 |
| Business burglary | 41 | 55 | -14 |
| Driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs | 34 | 36 | -2 |
| Rape | 24 | 21 | +3 |
| Neglect and ill-treatment of children | 16 | 3 | +13 |
| Public violence | 15 | 4 | +11 |
| Culpable homicide | 13 | 9 | +4 |
| Arson | 7 | 10 | -3 |
| Kidnapping | 7 | 9 | -2 |
| Sexual assault | 7 | 13 | -6 |
| Abduction | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Attempted sexual offences | 1 | 0 | +1 |
| Contact sexual offences | 1 | 2 | -1 |
| Sexual offences detected as a result of police action | 1 | 0 | +1 |
| Stock-theft | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Neighbouring police precincts
Precincts sharing a boundary with Elsies River, listed alphabetically
See Elsies River on the national crime map
View this precinct's boundary in context, with a year-by-year timeline back to 2013/14 and every other Western Cape precinct around it.
Open Elsies River on the crime map →Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about crime in Elsies River
Check another area
Data Sources & Notes
- Crime data: SAPS quarterly crime statistics
- SAPS data reflects reported crime only. Crime reporting rates vary by area. How much crime goes unreported? →
- This data is for informational purposes only and should not be used as the sole basis for safety or property decisions. Full disclaimer
- Full methodology →