Did you know that under the theme ‘Taking a firm stand for the safety of women and children’, the FCS Units become extraordinarily important?
Given the identification of 2018/2019 as the year of prioritising crimes against women, children and the elderly as vulnerable groups with a high risk of becoming the victims of crime, the Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences (FCS) Investigation Service becomes particularly important.
There are currently 183 FCS Units which creates a specialist investigative environment to deal with gender-based violent crimes and crimes against children, including sexual offence, child pornography and crime facilitated through electronic media.
Furthermore the SAPS has established 1 047 victim friendly facilities at police stations.
During 2017/2018 financial year, 692 LIFE sentences were handed down and the perpetrators of these crimes were sentenced to a total of 30 521 years’ imprisonment.
The SAPS’s management therefore made a clarion call to all members to deal decisively with the perpetrators of gender-based crimes and crimes against children, irrespective of their social, political or economic status.
The SAPS undertakes that these victims of crime will receive the service they deserve and will be treated with the necessary empathy and sensitivity that the situation requires and will stamp the authority of the State by strengthening the hand against criminals who target vulnerable groups.