Cape Town has launched a Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) unit, giving the City a new capability to respond to serious crime and high-risk incidents.
The unit was showcased alongside the City’s Metro Police Aviation Unit, which provides aerial surveillance and support for policing operations across Cape Town.
The SWAT unit will assist with gang-related crime and extortion, high-risk arrest warrants, hostage and barricaded-suspect situations, as well as security at high-profile events.
It is equipped with an armoured vehicle, modern firearms and technology including night-vision and heat-detection equipment.
According to the City, members of the team have extensive experience with the SAPS Special Task Force and are also helping develop training for future SWAT officers.
Cape Town also expands aerial policing
In another boost for policing, the City of Cape Town will also expand its aerial surveillance. The City’s Metro Police Aviation Unit includes certified pilots and four types of aircraft for different operational requirements.
Its work includes crime hotspot patrols, suspect tracking, search and rescue, crowd and event monitoring and land protection.
The aircraft use thermal and zoom cameras, AI-assisted tracking and laser rangefinders to help officers locate suspects and activity, including in difficult-to-see areas such as bush and rooftops.
Live aerial footage can be streamed to control centres, allowing officers on the ground to be directed more quickly.
The City said the units have already supported operations resulting in arrests in Delft, Somerset West, Strand, Tafelsig and Elsies River, among other incidents.
New digital nerve centre
The new specialised units form part of Cape Town’s wider policing expansion, which includes more than 1 300 new City police officers added during the current term of office.
The City is also finalising its Joint Policing Services Operational Centre (JPSOC), a digital nerve centre intended to bring together live information from drones, body-worn cameras, in-vehicle cameras, CCTV and automatic number plate recognition systems.
Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis said the City was building its policing capacity to tackle serious crime and wanted its officers to have expanded powers to investigate gang, gun and drug crime.
The City also said requests from SAPS to access its camera footage for investigations increased by 35% over the past year.