Executive summary findings

◆ The police failed to stop the rioting and looting in July 2021. The reasons are complex and sometimes not of their making.

◆ In some instances, police did not receive any intelligence upon which to plan operations.

◆ It’s unclear why at least six members of the senior leadership of Crime Intelligence were suspended in the period leading up to the unrest. It would be difficult for an organisation that was hollowed out in that manner to rise to the occasion in times of crisis.

◆ Overall, we have come to the conclusion that there was a failure by the intelligence structures to anticipate and respond adequately to the violence. Our findings are based on the following observations:

● The failure of the relevant state institutions to conduct timely risk assessments, despite the constant attacks on the authority of the state by some individuals and organisations.

● Input that we received from a forensic expert that the riots bore the hallmarks of a group of people being behind the organisation thereof, using technology as the primary mode of organisation.

● The methods employed took the police by surprise and they were unable to adapt their tactics to the situation facing them.

● The police were inadequately equipped and they ran out of crowd control equipment.

● The police were overwhelmed by the number of looters. There may be future incidents where numbers are big. There must be a way for the Public Order Policing to control large crowds.