GARDEN ROUTE, WESTERN CAPE – South African Police Service (SAPS) members have arrested six suspects and confiscated more than 1600 litres of alcohol during a weekend crackdown on unlicensed liquor outlets across the Garden Route District.

The co-ordinated sting operations commenced on Friday, 22 May 2026, and concluded on Sunday morning, 24 May 2026. Multiple specialized police units deployed across the region targeted informal settlements and residential areas known for illegal liquor trading.

The largest single seizure occurred in De Rust on Friday night, accounting for the vast majority of the confiscated volume.

• De Rust Raid: At 20:30 on Friday, police raided a premises in the Riemvasmaak informal settlement, seizing 1569 litres of liquor and arresting a 48-year-old man.
• Heidelberg Raids: On Saturday, Riversdale police hit two separate outlets in CJ Reid Crescent and Douglas Joseph Street, arresting two women aged 41 and 46.
• Additional Arrests: Parallel operations in Oudtshoorn, Ladismith, and Heidelberg resulted in the arrests of three additional suspects.

All six suspects face criminal charges for selling liquor without a licence. They will make their initial appearances in their respective local magistrates’ courts once formally processed.

District SAPS management emphasized that unregulated alcohol outlets directly fuel broader societal crimes. These targeted weekend raids form part of a broader, ongoing strategy to curb alcohol and drug abuse, which police identify as primary drivers of Gender-Based Violence and Femicide (GBVF) within local communities.