SA Police firearms used in crime in South Africa

South Africa’s Acting Minister of Police, Firoz Cachalia, revealed that 154 firearms belonging to SA Police Service were recovered from criminals.

Cachalia shared this information in response to a Parliamentary Question from the Democratic Alliance MP, Lisa Schickerling.

Cachalia said between 1 April 2025 and 31 December 2025, 154 firearms belonging to SAPS and 205 firearms belonging to private security companies were recovered.

These firearms ended up in the hands of criminals and were used in crimes across South Africa.

“Every firearm lost from official custody represents a potential threat to public safety,” said Schickerling.

“When those weapons are later recovered during criminal investigations, it points to failures in oversight and firearm control that cannot simply be ignored.”

Schickerling said that it was particularly alarming that 154 SAPS firearms were recovered from criminal possession.

“The public has a right to know how these weapons left police custody, whether through negligence, theft or deliberate criminal conduct,” she said.

She added that it was equally important to determine the consequences of the loss of these guns.

She called on the SAPS to finalise all disciplinary hearings and institute criminal charges where recommended against all police members found to have lost official firearms.

“This apparent lack of accountability risks creating a culture of impunity within the SA Police Service,” she said.

Schickerling said that the recovery of 205 firearms belonging to private security companies is equally troubling.

“These figures should prompt scrutiny of the private security sector and the effectiveness of oversight by the Private Security Industry Regulatory Authority (PSIRA).”

“If criminals are using security companies as a gateway to access firearms and ammunition, PSIRA should be clamping down on this,” she said.

“The Private Security Industry Regulatory Authority must explain how such individuals obtain and retain licences and registrations.”

“South Africans cannot be expected to trust the state’s efforts to combat violent crime while firearms from police stores and private security companies continue to surface in criminal networks.”