GAUTENG police commissioner, Lieutenant General Elias Mawela, condemned people who damage public or private property, whether on strike or not.
He said no one has a right to go out and intimidate others.
"Anyone who does that a case must be opened in police stations. They must know that even if they are not arrested today or tomorrow, they will be arrested at the end of the day,. Law-abiding citizens will give us information and will arrest them," he said.
Mawela led Operation Shanela with other law enforcement agencies in Centurion, Tshwane, on Thursday, 21 September 2023, called upon the citizens of Tshwane to exercise their constitutional rights within the ambit of the law as anyone who crosses the line must know that the long arm of the law will gradually catch on them, and they will be arrested.
"Since the strike in Tshwane started, some people were arrested, and we expect to arrest more of those who continue to damage state or public property," he said.
He said there are some problematic areas like in Lyttelton and informal settlements like Bushbuckridge.
Furthermore, Mawela said in some taxi ranks in the area, some people are peddling drugs.
He said from a far distance, you can't know that there are things happening in the area until you come closer to Lyttelton.
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He said those who have reported cases to the police, the perpetrators, are now behind bars.
"You can commit crime and run, but you can't hide. We will find and arrest you," he said.
He said a suspect was arrested in possession of a big consignment of crystal meth.
Mawela said the SANDF has a base and offices around the area, and in terms of law, they are allowed to work within the radius around their base.
At least 56 undocumented immigrants were arrested, and 900 known and wanted suspects were arrested in the province during the operation.
A Nissan 1400 stolen in Tsakane in March 2015 was found, and a male suspect was arrested for possessing a stolen vehicle.
