Police Minister Bheki Cele said the country has a serious illegal firearm problem, adding, however, that perpetrators use a variety of weapons to commit murder.

On Friday, Cele presented the latest crime stats for the third quarter, covering the period between October 2022 and December 2022.

The statistics show a significant increase of 10.1% for murder, which stands at 7,555 cases during that period.

Cele said during the third quarter, police seized of over 6,000 illegal firearms.

At least 3,000 people were killed with firearms, but Cele noted that firearms aren’t the only weapon of choice.

“3,144 people were killed with firearms, 2,498 people were killed with other weapons such as knives, sharp and blunt instruments, bricks, in many cases even with bare hands.”

Cele said one of the few categories to show a decrease are cash heists and bank robberies, which he said were due to an increase in police visibility.

Cele added that the police will recruit and train another 10,000 officers who will join the force at the end of 2023.