The determination of South African Police Service (SAPS) in the Northern Cape was apparent during the execution of #OperationShanela II across all five districts in the province, resulting in the arrest of 977 offenders. Executed from Monday, 23 February 2026 to Sunday, 1 March 2026, the operation comprised of ongoing intelligence-led actions focused on combating crime in identified hotspots, and intensifying safety within communities. The coordinated actions were lead by Deputy Provincial Commissioners, District Commissioners, Provincial Heads, and Senior officers in collaboration with various law enforcement agencies. Throughout the operation, multiple premises were searched.
This included the search of 25 464 individuals and 11 559 vehicles. Operational interventions included stop-and-search actions, high-visibility patrols, vehicle checkpoints (VCPs), and roadblocks. Numerous individuals were arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol and for being drunk in public. Additionally, multi-disciplinary teams participated in inter-provincial cross-border operations coordinated by the Free State province.
These actions resulted in the combating of crimes across the Provincial borders in the province. Detectives conducted tracing operations, leading to the arrest of wanted suspects who had been evading law enforcement for various offences. Compliance inspections were carried out at liquor outlets, second-hand goods dealers, scrapyards, recycling facilities, firearm dealers, informal businesses, mines, and farms to ensure compliance with relevant legislation. As a result, 24 unlicensed liquor outlets were shut down for non-compliance violations.
Operation Shanela II was conducted across all five districts in the Northern Capehttps://t.co/cAb6CuBuBU#Arrivealive #Enforcement @SAPoliceService pic.twitter.com/7bSmkRqdsB
– Arrive Alive (@_ArriveAlive) March 1, 2026
