Fewer incidents of crime were reported in the CBD year-on-year from the beginning of the year to middle September. According to the latest statistics by the Cape Town Central City Improvement District (CCID), these incidents dropped by 35 % year-on-year from January to the middle of this month. The manager of CCID Safety & Security, Jurie Bruwer, says a notable decrease of 56% was noted for crime related to credit card fraud and scamming. The number of incidents dropped from 116 in 2024 to 51 for the same period in 2025.
He added, “This is a decrease of 56 % which is very positive as card swapping is a huge concern, not only in the CBD but in the neighbouring precincts and other areas in greater Cape Town where there are high volumes of tourists.”
Fewer incidents of crime were reported in the CBD year-on-year
The year-on-year drop was recorded for
- credit card fraud;
- theft out of motor vehicles;
- general theft;
- common robbery;
- armed/business robberies;
- cell-phone theft;
- shoplifting,
- drinking & driving;
- being in possession of stolen goods; and
- being in possession of a dangerous weapon.
It does NOT include being in possession of an illegal substance.
Bruwer says: “This huge drop in the total number of incidents is due to increased and strategic deployment of the CCID’s Public Safety Officers and mobile units who work in shifts in the CBD 24/7.”
General theft decreased by 66 %, dropping from 80 to 27 incidents
He says that general theft decreased by 66%, dropping from 80 to 27 incidents. This was followed by, among others, a 65% reduction in cell phone theft and a 50% decrease in armed/business robberies. He says the statistics are part of the department’s analysis of crime patterns and trends within the CCID’s 1.6 km² geographical footprint in the CBD and apply only to this area. Bruwer says shoplifting was down from 52 to 38 incidents (27 %), as well as theft out of motor vehicles, which dropped from 188 incidents to 121 incidents (36 %).
A 65% reduction in cell phone theft
Bruwer says the statistics were derived from the number of crime-related incidents reported to the CCID Safety & Security’s 24-hour control room in the city centre. It dropped from 1,186 incidents to 773 from 1 January to 15 September 2024, compared to the same reporting period this year.
SAPS-assistance: The Number of incidents related to drug possession increased from 83 to 407 incidents
At tnumber of incidents related to drug possession increased from 83 to 407 incidentshe same time, Bruwer says that while the number of incidents related to drug possession increased from 83 to 407 incidents, the CCID helped secure 366 arrests. This is with assistance from SAPS and City of Cape Town Law Enforcement. This included criminals who were in possession of an illegal substance.
“There was also an increase of 129 % in the number of drinking & driving incidents, which went from 14 in 2024 to 32 in 2025 for the period under review.”
Bruwer added that the reduction in most crime categories is a result of dedicated policing of the CBD by the CCID in collaboration with its partners, SAPS and City of Cape Town Law Enforcement, as well as CCID-funded City of Cape Town Law Enforcement Officers.
“We conduct up to 100 joint crime-prevention operations in town every week and also have a very good working relationship with the City of Cape Town’s Traffic department and its camera surveillance unit, Cyclops,” he noted.
Bruwer says the CCID’s 327 security officers work in shifts day and night. “They are strategically deployed to avert crime in our area.”
Bruwer says the department’s effective use of technology has made it easier to proactively identify known criminals and to monitor their behaviour before they commit a crime. “This has also played a role in the drop in crime incidents,” he concludes.
