The City of Cape Town’s most wanted motorists has 268 outstanding warrants with a total value of just under R300,000.
The city’s Traffic Service has revealed that, as of 17 July 2023, the top 100 most wanted motorists in the city account for 9,430 outstanding warrants to the value of R9,129,180.
The top 100 list of offenders has been in place for at least five years by now, and while Cape Town has “made some strides” in taking down serious offenders, the majority still “remain at large,” said Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security, Alderman JP Smith.
“The list represents the lack of accountability that so many road users appear to have no problem with… because they think they can get away with it.”
Over the six-month period between January and June 2023, the team responsible for managing the top 100 list issued 14,773 warrants, equating to around 82 warrants per day.
During this time, the city’s authorities made arrests in relation to approximately 2,000 of these warrants, the most noteworthy including:
- 2 June – Motorist with 169 outstanding double warrants valued at R158,100 arrested in St. James
- 14 June – Motorist with 65 outstanding warrants valued at R67,700 arrested in Eersteriver
- 28 June – Motorist with 167 outstanding warrants valued at R148,550 arrested outside his home in Masiphumelele
- 14 July – Minibus driver with 18 outstanding double warrants valued at R78,000 pulled over and arrested on highway, granted bail of R16,700
It is difficult to catch these perpetrators as legislation dictates that warrants must be served in person, causing the city’s authorities to occasionally resort to stakeouts in order to track down and arrest guilty individuals, such as the case in Masiphumelele.
However, Cape Town will now start integrating automated number-plate recognition (ANPR) systems across its traffic services in the coming months to identify and catch these “scofflaws” more efficiently.
Smith therefore calls on motorists to settle their outstanding fines and warrants “unless they want to spend time behind bars.”
“The public is also reminded that the National Road Traffic Act empowers local authorities to place an administration mark against the identity number of an offender with outstanding warrants, which means the person is unable to perform any transactions on the Natis system, like the renewal of driving licences and motor vehicle licences,” he said.
How to pay traffic fines in Cape Town
For Cape Town residents, fines and warrants can be viewed and paid online at www.paythat.co.za – including those pre-dating 1 July 2022.
Other electronic payment methods are available by:
- Card – VISA, Mastercard
- EFT – ABSA, FNB, Nedbank, Capitec, Standard Bank
- Scan to Pay – Masterpass, Snapscan, Zapper, FNB, Nedbank, ABSA
In the event that a motorist wants to pay their fines in person at a retailer, they can pay at selected Spar outlets, Ackermans, Builder’s Warehouse, Game, Makro, PEP, Pick n Pay, and Shoprite/Checkers Money Market kiosks, said Smith.
Keyword: Cape Town’s most wanted motorist has 268 warrants – This is how much he owes