COVID-19 and crime: The good, the bad and the ugly

However, one particular crime has thrived during the period, being serial assaults including Gender Based Violence (GBV) and defilement. Giving an overview of the situation, police spokesperson, Dipheko Motube told Mmegi this week that GBV and serial assaults have become the new headache for police under COVID-19 restrictions.

“The beginning of COVID-19 has changed and impacted the lives of people in Botswana and crime is no exception,” Motube said. He said during the country’ s first ever lockdown last year April police recorded 22 cases of rape and 23 defilement cases, one threat-to-kill, two murder cases (between lovers) and one indecent assault.