‘An attack on police is an attack on society’ – over 20 officers killed, says Hawks bossLebeya

Lebeya

Cape Town – Twenty-two police officers were murdered in the first three months of 2025, an increase of nine compared to the previous quarter, according to Hawks head Lieutenant-General Godfrey Lebeya.

Sixteen officers were killed off duty and six on duty, with half of the murders occurring in Gauteng.

“There exists a blue wall in South Africa: a human wall formed by men and women in blue. The wall that divides and shields the good from the bad elements in society,” Lebeya said.

“The stronger the wall, the safer the community. The weaker the wall, the happier the criminals. Criminals will continuously attack this wall in order to access the protected good citizens of our beloved country.

“An attack on police officials is an assault on society and, indeed, an attack on the state. We categorised the killing of police officials as the national priority offence that requires the attention of the DPCI.

“During this period, 22 police officials were murdered, of whom 16 were off duty while six were on duty.”

Two metro police officers were also killed.

Lebeya, delivering his final briefing before the end of his term in May, reported 38 arrests and 14 convictions related to these murders, including 11 life sentences and a total of 487 years of imprisonment.

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