By Thapelo Molefe
Illegal mining remains one of the biggest policing challenges facing the North West as newly appointed provincial commissioner Lieutenant General Arthur Peter Adams prepares to take office.
Acting National Commissioner Lieutenant General Puleng Dimpane announced Adams’ appointment on Thursday, saying he would assume office on Friday following consultations with the North West provincial government.
Dimpane said the mineral-rich province continued to attract organised criminal syndicates involved in illegal mining, infrastructure-related crime, illicit firearms, money laundering and cross-border criminal activities.
She said Operation Prosper, involving SAPS and the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), had made progress in disrupting illegal mining networks, but warned that the operation needed to be strengthened.
“The province remains one of the epicentres of the fight against illegal mining,” Dimpane said.
“Operation Prosper, through the deployment of the SANDF, continues to make significant inroads in disrupting illegal mining networks, dismantling criminal syndicates and restoring the authority of the State. This momentum must not only continue, but it must intensify.”
Adams will inherit a province battling high levels of violent crime, organised crime, cash-in-transit robberies, stock theft, illegal firearms, drug trafficking and crimes linked to its border with Botswana and proximity to Gauteng.
Dimpane said emerging crime trends required intelligence-led and coordinated policing interventions.
She said Adams was “one of the most specialised operational commanders produced by the South African Police Service”, and that he was selected because of his operational experience and leadership.
Adams brings 34 years of policing experience to the post. He has served in Public Order Policing, the National Intervention Unit and the elite Counter Assault Team.
He also commanded the Thabazimbi Tactical Training Academy, served as Rustenburg cluster commander and Mangaung Metro district commissioner, and most recently as deputy provincial commissioner responsible for visible policing in the Free State.
Dimpane said Adams would be expected to strengthen leadership across the province’s policing districts and 86 police stations, improve intelligence-led policing, reinforce detective services, enhance visible policing and restore discipline within SAPS.
Addressing the incoming commissioner, she said: “The communities of the North West expect visible policing, decisive action against illegal mining, safer communities and professional policing.”
She urged Adams to lead with “courage, integrity, humility and discipline” while driving the implementation of the SAPS Reset Agenda and restoring public confidence in policing.
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