MORE zama zamas have been nabbed in the West Rand, west of Joburg.
This is after police went out in full force in Rietvallei to remove illegal miners who have chosen to defy orders by Police and local authorities to stop their illegal mining activities.
Police spokesman Captain Solomon Sibiya said, “In a fully-fledged intensified operation comprising of local crime prevention Police, National Public Order Policing, NIU (National Intervention unit), Mounted Unit, Infrastructure unit, Westrand K9 Unit and Sibanye Stillwater, a total of 31 illegal miners were arrested.
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“The operation not only focused on arrests but also to shut down shafts and holes from which the foreign law transgressors were operating, using a TLB and a truck to load illegal mining equipment.”
Sibiya said Illegal mining equipment seized included 23 pendukas, 59 bags of soil, gas bottles, cutting torches, water pumps, shovels, electric eventing cords, electric motors and steel balls and three giant generators.
The acting station head of Kagiso Police Colonel Peter Mabuso said, "Such operations will be sustainable and intensified until we are satisfied that these perpetrators are no more in existence, no matter how long this will take, we won't rest.”
“All arrested suspects have already appeared before the Kagiso Magistrate’s Court and were remanded in custody. They will all be denied bail.”
