JHB Central Precinct
How much crime was reported in the JHB Central precinct?
The JHB Central SAPS precinct recorded 9,349 crimes in Apr 2025–Mar 2026, down 3.3% compared with Apr 2024–Mar 2025.
A raw count, not adjusted for population: larger police areas serve more people and record more crime.
Latest quarter (Apr–Jun 2026): 2,232 crimes, down 4.1% compared with Apr–Jun 2025 (2,328).
Very High volume for Gauteng: the highest fifth of its 146 precincts by reported crime, Apr–Jun 2026.
Nationally Very High: the highest fifth of the 1,165 precincts that reported crime, Apr–Jun 2026.
Largest categories
Whole-precinct figures, reported crime only, raw counts. Source: SAPS quarterly crime statistics (saps.gov.za), Apr 2025–Mar 2026.
What this data can't tell you
How we handle these →Where within the precinct. SAPS reports one figure for the whole area; all 6 suburbs share it.
Unreported crime. Only crime reported to police is counted, so real incidence is higher.
Crime per resident. Raw counts, no population adjustment — the trend is the steadier signal.
View 6 suburbs in this precinct
All these suburbs share the same crime statistics because SAPS reports data at precinct level.
Reported crimes
9,349
Apr 2025–Mar 2026 · Full year
Compared with 2018/19
↓ 33.9%
fewer than in 2018/19, before the pandemic
Updated · SAPS Q1 2026-27 release
Crime breakdown
Top reported offences in 2025-2026, with change vs Apr 2024–Mar 2025
| Crime category | Reported count | Change vs Apr 2024–Mar 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Drug-related crime | 1,464 | +127 |
| Aggravated robbery | 1,142 | -178 |
| Carjacking | 77 | |
| Truck hijacking | 3 | |
| Robbery at residential premises | 15 | |
| Robbery at non-residential premises | 124 | |
| Robbery of cash in transit | 2 | |
| Bank robbery | 0 | |
| Components of aggravated robbery above, already counted in that total. Not additional crimes. | ||
| Commercial crime | 985 | +88 |
| Driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs | 811 | +165 |
| All theft not mentioned elsewhere | 717 | -234 |
| Common robbery | 682 | -52 |
| Serious assault | 549 | +72 |
| Theft from vehicle | 411 | -130 |
| Common assault | 408 | -160 |
Crime over time
Reported crimes per SAPS financial year, by category
Crime trend by year
Dashed: Apr–Jun 2026 only (1 of 4 quarters published) — a partial year, not comparable with the full years before it.
Hollow points with dashed lines indicate years with fewer than 4 quarters of data — those totals may be lower because SAPS has not released every quarter.
Over the past decade, crime here has fallen.
The numbers behind that — recent years vs earlier years, averaged to see past a one-year spike
Over ~5 years
↓ 16.2%
avg 23/24–25/26 vs avg 18/19–20/21
Over ~10 years
↓ 32.6%
avg 23/24–25/26 vs avg 13/14–15/16
Year-by-year totals
| Year | Reported crimes |
|---|---|
| 2026/27 (Apr–Jun only) | 2,232 |
| 2025/26 | 9,349 |
| 2024/25 | 9,664 |
| 2023/24 | 10,618 |
| 2022/23 | 10,838 |
| 2021/22 | 9,533 |
| 2020/21 | 8,102 |
| 2019/20 | 13,097 |
| 2018/19 | 14,142 |
| 2017/18 | 13,742 |
| 2016/17 | 14,374 |
| 2015/16 | 14,380 |
| 2014/15 | 15,466 |
| 2013/14 | 14,143 |
View full crime breakdown table
| Category | 2025-2026 | 2024-2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Drug-related crime | 1,464 | 1,337 | +127 |
| Aggravated robbery | 1,142 | 1,320 | -178 |
| Carjacking | 77 | 127 | -50 |
| Truck hijacking | 3 | 8 | -5 |
| Robbery at residential premises | 15 | 16 | -1 |
| Robbery at non-residential premises | 124 | 182 | -58 |
| Robbery of cash in transit | 2 | 1 | +1 |
| Bank robbery | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Components of aggravated robbery above, already counted in that total. Not additional crimes. SAPS reports these both individually and within the aggravated-robbery figure. | |||
| Commercial crime | 985 | 897 | +88 |
| Driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs | 811 | 646 | +165 |
| All theft not mentioned elsewhere | 717 | 951 | -234 |
| Common robbery | 682 | 734 | -52 |
| Serious assault | 549 | 477 | +72 |
| Theft from vehicle | 411 | 541 | -130 |
| Common assault | 408 | 568 | -160 |
| Shoplifting | 390 | 388 | +2 |
| Sexual offences detected as a result of police action | 364 | 315 | +49 |
| Vehicle theft | 276 | 222 | +54 |
| Attempted murder | 216 | 130 | +86 |
| Malicious damage | 198 | 228 | -30 |
| Kidnapping | 195 | 187 | +8 |
| Business burglary | 151 | 204 | -53 |
| Murder | 106 | 164 | -58 |
| Rape | 98 | 96 | +2 |
| Illegal possession of firearms and ammunition | 87 | 90 | -3 |
| Residential burglary | 34 | 75 | -41 |
| Sexual assault | 18 | 33 | -15 |
| Crimen injuria | 16 | 17 | -1 |
| Culpable homicide | 13 | 27 | -14 |
| Neglect and ill-treatment of children | 11 | 9 | +2 |
| Attempted sexual offences | 3 | 6 | -3 |
| Arson | 2 | 0 | +2 |
| Public violence | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Abduction | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Contact sexual offences | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Stock-theft | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Neighbouring police precincts
Precincts sharing a boundary with JHB Central, listed alphabetically. Counts are for Apr–Jun 2026, changes vs Apr–Jun 2025.
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JHB Central SAPS
City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality
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Contact details last verified: 2026-09-27. Source: SAPS · municipalities.co.za
See JHB Central on the national crime map
View this precinct's boundary in context, with a year-by-year timeline back to 2013/14 and every other Gauteng precinct around it.
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Common questions about crime in JHB Central
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Data Sources & Notes
- Crime data: SAPS quarterly crime statistics
- SAPS data reflects reported crime only. Crime reporting rates vary by area. How much crime goes unreported? →
- This data is for informational purposes only and should not be used as the sole basis for safety or property decisions. Full disclaimer
- Full methodology →