POLICE DOGS HAVE THEIR DAY
THE City of Cape Town has lauded the service animals attached to its metro police, saying they’ve made a significant dent in drug dealing and led to the arrests of 2000 suspects a decade after they were introduced.
Cape Town’s Mayco member for safety and security, JP Smith, says drug dealers have over the years become more creative in trying to avoid detection and the confiscation of their goods by hiding their illicit wares in weird and wonderful places.
“But our canines are up to the task and I believe this is one of many areas where the service animals have made a huge impact,’ said Smith.
Senior Superintendent Joan Felix, the service animals unit commander, said the unit was established in the run-up to the 2010 Soccer World Cup, with just 11 dogs. Ten years later, the unit now boasts 25 dogs that are skilled in the art of detecting narcotics, explosives, copper and metal, as well as searching for missing persons.
The unit has seven horses which took over from the previous group that retired in 2018.
“The equestrian unit conducts crime prevention patrols at large events as the horses give officers a unique vantage point from which to look out for any criminal activity. They’re also very useful in terrain not suited to vehicles, such as informal settlements and mountain patrols.
“However, the service animals also play an important role in our social crime prevention efforts and help to establish a rapport with communities and build relationships in the fight against crime,” added Felix.
“The enforcement successes tell but one part of the story,” said Smith.
“Having these officers and their four-legged colleagues present and visible in communities and public spaces is definitely a deterrent to would-be criminals, and the value in this can’t be understated.”