This type of crime has semerged as a serious concern in South Africa, with Gauteng as the clear epicentre of the problem.
Kidnappings have emerged as a serious concern in South Africa, with Gauteng as the clear epicentre of the problem.
This is according to the latest crime statistics published by the South African Police Service (SAPS) over the past year.
The latest figures show that while overall serious crime has declined in several categories, kidnappings have remained stubbornly high.
Nationally, between roughly 4,200 and 4,800 kidnapping cases were recorded in most quarters during the 2025/26 financial year.
In the first quarter, covering April to June 2025, kidnapping cases increased by 6.2% year-on-year from 4,205 to 4,466.
The number rose again to 4,772 cases in the second quarter, before reaching 4,775 in the third quarter.
The fourth quarter recorded 4,478 cases, a 2% decline, while the first quarter of the 2026/27 financial year still recorded a high 4,251 cases.
The more worrying trend is the growth in kidnappings involving ransom demands. These cases increased by 54.8% year-on-year in the first quarter of 2025/26, rising from 135 to 209 incidents.
The number remained elevated throughout the year, reaching 224 cases in the second quarter, 208 in the third and 216 in the fourth.
In the first quarter of 2026/27, ransom kidnappings increased further to 231 cases, representing a 10.5% year-on-year increase and a 6.9% rise from the previous quarter.
Gauteng is bearing the largest share of this crime. The province accounted for 56.9% of all reported kidnappings nationally in the first quarter of 2025/26, with 2,542 cases.
It recorded the same number in the second quarter, accounting for 53.3% of the national total, followed by 2,551 cases in the third quarter and 2,452 in the fourth.
Gauteng’s dominance becomes even more pronounced when ransom-related kidnappings are considered.
The province accounted for between 60% and 75.5% of these cases across the reporting periods. In the first quarter of 2026/27, Gauteng recorded 140 of the country’s 231 ransom kidnappings.
KwaZulu-Natal is the second-largest contributor to the national kidnapping total, generally accounting for between 16% and 19% of cases.
The province recorded between 737 and 903 kidnappings per quarter and regularly reported the second-highest number of ransom cases.
Other provinces have recorded considerably smaller shares. Mpumalanga and North West generally accounted for between 4% and 7% each, although both experienced periods of sharp increases.
The Western Cape represented about 4.4% to 5.8% of national cases and generally recorded year-on-year declines.
The Eastern Cape and Limpopo each contributed between 3.5% and 5%, while the Free State accounted for about 3% to 4% and the Northern Cape for less than 1%.
The concentration is also clear when looking at individual police stations. Gauteng precincts dominate the list of the country’s 30 kidnapping hotspots.
Vosloorus in Ekurhuleni consistently ranked as the country’s leading kidnapping hotspot, recording 69 cases in the first quarter and 74 in the second.
Heidelberg in the Sedibeng district was also consistently near the top, recording 58 cases in the first quarter and 60 in the second.
Other Gauteng hotspots include Midrand, which recorded 52 cases in the first quarter, Johannesburg Central with 48, Roodepoort with 47 and Eldorado Park with 46.
Tembisa, Kempton Park, Alberton, De Deur, Silverton, Vereeniging and Rietgat also featured among the prominent affected areas.
Outside Gauteng, Umlazi in KwaZulu-Natal recorded 46 cases in the first quarter, while Inanda and Verulam were also among the country’s prominent kidnapping hotspots.
The figures suggest that organised financial crime is an important factor behind the increase in ransom-related kidnappings.
Apart from kidnappings, the SAPS recorded declines in several serious crime categories, including murder, carjacking, aggravated robbery, residential and business robbery, burglary, vehicle theft and stock theft.
Murder declined by 6.9% in the first quarter and 9.5% in the fourth, while carjacking fell by 20.4% in the fourth quarter. Business robberies dropped by 22% over the same period.
However, attempted murder increased in several quarters, while crimes detected through police action, including drug-related offences and driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, rose sharply.
