This was revealed by the provincial police department during a two-day GBV and femicide indaba held in Bloemfontein this week. In the categories of murder, rape, and assault, Bloemspruit was reported at the session as having the highest number of sampled GBV cases between January and March 2021. Free Staters will be able to see how the province fares when compared to other provinces in this regard when the quarterly national crime statistics are released on Friday 14 May by the Police Ministry. 

Free State law enforcement agencies have conceded during this indaba that they have failed in competently handling the scourge of gender-based violence (GBV) in the province.

Bloemspruit, which falls under the Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality recently came under scrutiny when OFM News reported that it was one of a handful of police stations in the area that is being forced to operate without a sufficient number of functioning police vehicles due to a growing backlog at the state garage where these vehicles are meant to be fixed.

Bloemspruit is mentioned alongside Kagisanong and the Kopanong Police Stations as having a significant number of non-functioning police vans parked on the premises. A well-placed source tells OFM News that some of these vehicles only have minor issues, such as faulty brake pads, amongst others, but nothing is being done to rectify the issue. The source says of bigger concern is that this vehicle backlog is impeding on servicing crime-ridden areas like Bloemspruit.

In November 2020, OFM News reported on the scores of vehicles in the province which were piling up at the aforementioned garage. Tens more were allegedly kept at police stations across the province, due to the lack of space at the aforementioned garage. Over 270 police vehicles at the time had either mechanical, panel beating, or minor service problems. The source says after the 2020 story broke, authorities stopped storing the vehicles at the state garage and continued keeping them at the police stations instead, however, this meant the problem might have persisted.

OFM News