https://www.polity.org.za
Deepening Democracy through Access to Information
Home / Statements RSS ← Back
Close

Email this article

separate emails by commas, maximum limit of 4 addresses

Sponsored by

Close

Article Enquiry

Eskom: Armed cable thieves arrested in Howick, KwaZulu-Natal

Close

Embed Video

Eskom: Armed cable thieves arrested in Howick, KwaZulu-Natal

Eskom: Armed cable thieves arrested in Howick, KwaZulu-Natal

23rd April 2017

ARTICLE ENQUIRY      SAVE THIS ARTICLE      EMAIL THIS ARTICLE

Font size: -+

/ MEDIA STATEMENT / The content on this page is not written by Polity.org.za, but is supplied by third parties. This content does not constitute news reporting by Polity.org.za.

Last Monday, 17 April 2017, members of Eskom’s Security Investigations team arrested four men who were found in possession of stolen overhead conductor cable in Howick, KwaZulu-Natal.

The arrest came after three of the suspects were observed leaving an area where a high-voltage overhead power line had just been cut.

“Our security officers were conducting routine surveillance when they noticed sparks in the night sky along Petrus Stroom Road in Dargle, near Howick in KwaZulu-Natal,” says Tebogo Rakau, Divisional Executive for Security at Eskom.

The sparks caught the attention of the security officers because of the power lines that run in that area. When they approached to investigate, they saw three men who seemed to be waiting next to the road. A few hours later, a white minibus was seen travelling towards the waiting men. When it stopped, the men started loading what looked like rolls of cable into the minibus, Rakau explains.

“The quick reaction of our officers ensured that all suspects, including the driver of the minibus, were arrested on the scene,” he remarks.

A search of the vehicle and the suspects revealed ten rolls of stolen copper conductor cable, hacksaws, side cutters, large pliers and a 9mm Norinco pistol.

All evidence and the suspects were handed over to the Howick SAPS.

“Even though the thieves were apprehended very quickly, significant damage to important infrastructure had already occurred. In this case, it disrupted power distribution between Howick and the Midmar Dam, which supplies water to large parts of KwaZulu-Natal, including Pinetown, Cato Ridge and Umlazi,” Rakau adds.

“This demonstrates the far-reaching effects of cable theft. It is not only power supply that’s affected. Other essential services such as water supply, healthcare services and learning at schools are also disrupted when electricity infrastructure like power lines and transformers are damaged or stolen.

“While Eskom remains resolute in the fight against cable theft, we implore each resident to play their part in protecting the public infrastructure that we all benefit from. This can be done by reporting those involved in this crime by sending anonymous SMS tip-offs to Crime Line on 32211.”

 

Advertisement

Issued by Eskom

To watch Creamer Media's latest video reports, click here
 
Advertisement

EMAIL THIS ARTICLE      SAVE THIS ARTICLE ARTICLE ENQUIRY

To subscribe email subscriptions@creamermedia.co.za or click here
To advertise email advertising@creamermedia.co.za or click here

Comment Guidelines

 

About

Polity.org.za is a product of Creamer Media.
www.creamermedia.co.za

Other Creamer Media Products include:
Engineering News
Mining Weekly
Research Channel Africa

Read more

Subscriptions

We offer a variety of subscriptions to our Magazine, Website, PDF Reports and our photo library.

Subscriptions are available via the Creamer Media Store.

View store

Advertise

Advertising on Polity.org.za is an effective way to build and consolidate a company's profile among clients and prospective clients. Email advertising@creamermedia.co.za

View options
Free daily email newsletter Register Now