The South African Police Service has destroyed over 279 000 firearms, over the past 6 years. In the latest operation, a total of 16,049 firearms and firearm parts were destroyed in Vanderbijlpark. This was the second destruction for the 2024/2025 financial year.
More than 279 000 firearms destroyed
The Deputy National Commissioner for Policing, Lieutenant General Tebello Mosikili presided over the official firearm destruction process. He says of the total of 16,049 firearms and firearm parts destroyed this week, 12,502 were handguns. There were also rifles, shotguns and firearms.
What was destroyed in February 2025:
12 502 were handguns
1 921 are rifles
1 305 shotguns and
47 combination firearms
Lt Gen Mosikili says last week alone, police officers confiscated 129 unlicensed firearms, as well as 1 823 rounds of ammunition. The items were seized during nationwide SHANELA operations. The latest destruction this week took the total number of firearms and firearm parts destroyed over the past 6 years to 279 594.
Firearms sent for Ballistics tests
At the same time, Lt Gen Mosikili said, all firearms with working mechanisms were subjected to IBIS (Integrated Ballistics Identification System) testing. This was done to determine if they had been used in the commission of other crimes, including those handed in during the Amnesty period.
Here is a Provincial breakdown:
Western Cape: 4 509
Gauteng: 4 159
KwaZulu-Natal: 3 241
Eastern Cape: 1 104
Free State: 1 046
Limpopo: 711
Mpumalanga: 461
North West: 459
Northern Cape: 359
The Police have confirmed that among those weapons destroyed, were also firearms linked to finalised cases related to violence against women and children, cash-in-transit (CIT) robberies as well as voluntarily surrendered firearms. Weapons handed in during the Amnesty period were also destroyed.
Weapons, rifles, shotguns and firearms, destroyed
Lt Gen Mosikili added, that the destroyed firearms, firearm parts and ammunition were confiscated during policing operations such as OPERATION SHANELA. It was then forfeited to the state.
He elaborated, “The South African Police Service (SAPS) remains steadfast in its commitment to detecting and permanently removing illegal firearms and ammunition from circulation.”
The Deputy National Commissioner for Policing has reaffirmed SAPS’ commitment to intensify operations aimed at removing illegal firearms and ammunition from the streets.
