‘Shotspotter’ pays off with 17 arrests
SEVENTEEN gang-related arrests made by police in Port Elizabeth in the past three months can be directly linked to information provided by the municipality’s Shotspotter system, mayoral committee member for safety and security John Best said yesterday.
There were also an additional seven arrests – one for murder, three for attempted murder and three for the illegal possession of a firearm and ammunition – made by metro police.
Best said in another incident, metro police confiscated a shotgun and 54 rounds.
He was speaking at a joint media conference held with US company Shotspotter Incorporated.
Shotspotter technology, piloted in Port Elizabeth’s Helenvale since October, uses strategically placed acoustic sensors that immediately inform law enforcement of gunshots while providing precise information on the location.
Shotspotter president and chief executive Ralph Clark said he was impressed with the level of cooperation between the Metro Police in the city and the South African Police Service.
“The impact of Shotspotter on smaller communities is the most exciting to me,” the American said.
The underreporting of gun crime in Nelson Mandela Bay was not a unique phenomenon, he said.
“In the US, about 10% of all gun violence is reported by residents.
“When gun violence is not reported, the police cannot respond and as a result gun violence becomes normalised,” Clark said.
“By enabling the police to respond to these events in real time, we can then communicate to the community that the police do care and build trusting relationships and community capacity to address gun violence.
“We have three deployments in South Africa and the thing I have been the most impressed with here in Nelson Mandela Bay is the cooperation and collaboration between your local Metro Police and SAPS, as collaboration between different agencies and different stakeholders is crucial.”
Best said the data received from Shotspotter showed that the initial 15 streets where regular gunshot incidents occurred had now been reduced to three.
Executive director for safety and security Keith Meyer said Shotspotter was providing valuable intelligence.
“Intelligence is needed for proper planning,” he said.
This would increase the efficiency of visible policing and also the prevention of gun violence, he said.
Bay mayor Athol Trollip said: “This is not a community that is violent and angry all the time.
“There are spikes of gunfire that can literally be triggered by anything.
“Community members who are not involved in the conflict are often affected.”
Trollip said Shotspotter was removing the risk in reporting shots being fired from innocent community members.
“Nobody has to tell the police that shots are being fired.
“Shotspotter will tell them. The impimpi [informer] is not a person, it is technology,” he said.