The township of Inanda, north of Durban, has recorded the most rapes for the third consecutive year.

This is according to police minister Bheki Cele, who released the annual crime statistics on Friday morning.

He said the spatial design of townships was a contributing factor in the high rates of crime.

The statistics, which cover April 1 2019 to March 31 2020, revealed that Inanda SAPS recorded 297 rape cases. Umlazi, south of Durban, came second with 293 cases.

In the category of murder, Inanda was third with 231 cases and Umlazi fourth with 212 cases.

The station which recorded the most murders was Delft in the Western Cape with 265 cases.

“When it comes to rape, in Inanda most of the people who become victims are preyed upon while coming from shebeens - around them or in them,” Cele said. “Murders are part and parcel of these rapes,” he said, suggesting that alcohol was a significant contributing factor.

“Umlazi is a formal township but there are a lot of informal structures there. It has been proven we have a problem with the environmental design of these areas. Inanda is also not very formal, and these designs contribute to the problems,” he said.

Cele said the crime stats necessitated a change of strategy, and he could see KwaZulu-Natal becoming a focus, as had been done in the Western Cape.

“Operation Vala was launched last year to try to stabilise the province, but the area still has issues,” he said.

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