FOURTEEN suspects involved in cable theft incidents, including a scrap metal dealer, were arrested on Tuesday, 8 March, in Vosman outside the township of KwaGuqa in Mpumalanga.
In a statement released on Wednesday, Eskom said a large volume of stolen cables, comprising of aluminium and copper, was found stored on several of the premises.
“Following intensive investigations, the joint SAPS/Eskom team visited an unscrupulous scrap metal dealer in eMalahleni. Large amounts of copper cables were found loaded on a truck that was ready to off-load at the facility. The truck driver was arrested. He pointed out a residential property in Vosman where he had collected the stolen cables earlier,” Eskom said.
The power utility said more copper cables were found at the premises, all of which were prepared and ready for shipment.
“A criminal case has been opened against the perpetrators, including the scrap dealer and some of the security personnel and more arrests are likely to follow,” Eskom said.
Further investigations revealed that some security personnel employed to protect the Eskom cables were also involved with the syndicate.
“Cable theft continuously affects business operations and hampers the provision of basic essential services to industry and communities,” said Advocate Karen Pillay, the power utility’s head of security.
Pillay said various state-owned entities such as Eskom, Transnet, Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa) and Telkom have direct losses of more than R7 billion a year due to cable theft.
Mpumalanga police spokeswoman, Captain Dineo Lucy Sekgotodi, said the suspects took advantage while Eskom was busy servicing the lines and switched off the transmission to prevent injuries to the passer-by.
“The Hawks from National office and Provincial were summoned to the crime scene together with other stakeholders. During the search, aluminium was found loaded inside three trucks valued at R2.1 million,” she said.
Sekgotodi said the suspects were charged and would appear in court soon.
