Provincial crime figures released on 5 December reveal a disturbing reality as Limpopo enters the Christmas period.
Limpopo's latest official crime statistics, covering July to September 2025, arrived just as families start to prepare for their festive travels — and while the province boasts improvements in some categories, the detailed station-level figures expose a far bleaker picture. Nowhere is this contrast more striking than in Thohoyandou, which has emerged yet again as one of Limpopo's most dangerous places in which to live, work or celebrate the holidays.
Released by the SAPS on 5 December, the second-quarter crime report for the 2025/26 financial year highlights province-wide successes, including a 20% reduction in murder. The period also saw reductions in robbery with aggravating circumstances (14.5%), trio crimes (21.9%), carjacking (34 fewer cases), robbery at non-residential premises (21.9%), assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm (7.1%), and attempted murder (5.2%).
But the moment one drills down to individual stations, the festive cheer evaporates. The numbers show a frightening concentration of violent and sexual crime in the Vhembe District, with Thohoyandou dominating category after category — often in the top position in the entire province.
A province improving — but a district in distress
SAPS credits targeted operations and strengthened community partnerships for Limpopo's overall reductions. Yet the Vhembe District, and Thohoyandou in particular, is simply not following the provincial trend. Instead, they stand as alarming outliers in an otherwise improving landscape.
Across Limpopo's "big picture" of community-reported crimes (the so-called 17 community-reported serious crimes), Thohoyandou ranks second, behind Polokwane only. But when the categories narrow to crimes against a person — the ones that truly measure how safe it is to walk outside, live at home, or gather with friends — Thohoyandou takes first place.
It is in these categories that the district's crisis becomes unmistakable.
Thohoyandou leads Limpopo's worst lists
As mentioned, when it comes to contact crimes (crimes against a person), Thohoyandou sits in first place, up 13 cases from 644 in the previous reporting quarter to 657 for the period. Seshego and Mankweng police stations follow, but only distantly.
When it comes to murder, Thohoyandou is once again the province's highest-contributing station, up nine cases from seven (2024/25) to 16 for the second quarter of 2025/26. Mankweng and Seshego take the second and third positions.
Sadly, Thohoyandou claims the title of "Rape Capital" of Limpopo once more, taking first place with a reported 67 cases for the period. It must, however, be noted that the rape rate was 10.7% lower than the corresponding period last year, when 75 cases were reported. As for the period, Seshego and Mankweng follow behind.
Thohoyandou recorded the second-highest number of carjackings province-wide, despite not being a major metropolitan centre. For the period under review, six cases were reported — down seven counts from the 13 reported in the corresponding period last year. This time, Dennilton police station is second, followed by Driekop.
Regarding kidnapping, Thohoyandou (10 cases, down one from the 11 cases in the 2024/25 second quarter) appears in the top three again, ranked third behind Dennilton (12 cases) and Maake (also with 10 cases).
Thohoyandou also ranked third regarding robbery at residential premises, following Dennilton and Seshego — still making it one of the province's most dangerous places to sleep at night. Regarding community-reported serious crimes, Thohoyandou comes in second, surpassed only by Polokwane.
In short, the Thohoyandou station features in every major violent-crime category, often as the worst. This concentration is unmatched anywhere else in Limpopo.
Vhembe top of the log when it comes to gender-based violence
When it comes to gender-based violence-related crimes, the Vhembe District has emerged as the most critical hotspot in the region, recording the highest overall figure for selected domestic-violence-related crimes, with a total of 531 incidents during the period. This comprehensive tally surpasses all other Limpopo districts, placing it ahead of Capricorn (455 cases), Mopani (367 cases), Sekhukhune (285 cases) and Waterberg (218 cases).
How safe is Limpopo compared to the rest of South Africa?
Surprisingly — and importantly for context — Limpopo remains one of the safer provinces in South Africa when measured by murder rate, with roughly 3.2 murders per 100,000 people for the quarter, the lowest in the country. The murder rates for the rest of South Africa are: Eastern Cape (15.6), Western Cape (15.3), KwaZulu-Natal (10), Gauteng (8.4), Free State (6.3), North West (5.7), and Mpumalanga and Northern Cape, both with a murder rate of 5.3 per 100,000 people.
While this might paint an overly calm picture, it hides the fact that Limpopo's safety is highly uneven. Most districts enjoy relatively low levels of violent crime, but Vhembe — and Thohoyandou specifically — buck that trend dramatically.