You are 100 times more likely to be shot and killed by an illegal firearm than by a gun which is properly licensed, official statistics show. Authorities were fighting a losing battle against illegal firearms, with shocking statistics revealing that more than 28 people were killed in South Africa daily. Wouter Wessels, Freedom Front Plus (FF+) MP, national chair and chief police spokesperson, said parliamentary replies to questions from the FF+ regarding murders committed with legally licensed firearms versus illegal firearms over the past four years revealed that 41 297 murders were committed with illegal, unlicensed firearms in the past four financial years, from 2022-23 to 2025-26.
“That is more than 28 murders per day,” he said. Wessels said the statistics provided by the Acting Minister of Police, Firoz Cachalia, clearly show South Africa’s firearm crime problem stems from unlicensed firearms in the hands of criminals, as 99% of murders were committed with illegal firearms. “In contrast, only 393 people were killed with licensed firearms in the same period,” he said.
“Many of these likely occurred in self-defence, which means the actual number of unlawful murders committed with legal weapons is even lower. “Over the same period, 38, 40, 24 and 40 people, respectively, were murdered with firearms that had previously belonged to the police.” ‘Owners not the problem’ Wessels said licensed firearm owners are not the problem; criminals with illegal firearms were. AfriForum’s community safety spokesperson Jacques Broodryk said the murder statistics confirm the government’s motives for stricter firearm control are ideologically driven.
“Cachalia stated that 9 398 people were murdered with firearms during the 2025-26 financial year,” he said. “Only 75 of these murders – or 0.8% were committed by the legal owner of a lawfully licensed firearm, whereas illegal firearms were used in 9 323 (or 99.2%) of all firearm-related murders during the same period.” Despite this fact, legal firearm owners continue to be targeted through stricter legislation. Broodryk said the figures provided by Cachalia confirm that firearms originally belonging to the South African Police Service (Saps), the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) and the metro police were used in 46 murders during the 2025-26 financial year.
“For the past 18 months, AfriForum has been warning that th…
Summary from source