Picture: @newstruthliz/AP
Police have confirmed that about fourteen illegal miners have resurfaced from an abandoned gold mineshaft in the North West.
Police said the zama zamas resurfaced overnight on Sunday.
A special task team established by police minister Senzo Mchunu is currently conducting an operation to get the illegal miners out of the mine in Stilfontein in a bid to shutdown the scourge of illegal mining plaguing the country.
ALSO READ: Extortionist demands cut from rescuers at Stilfontein mine
Police spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe said officers will remain at the mine if and when more miners resurface.
“A total of 14 illegal miners resurfaced on Sunday evening at shaft 10, which is nearby to shaft 11, where all these other illegal miners have been resurfacing from. So it just goes to show that these two shafts are linked and that no one is trapped. They can actually come out on their own.
“They’re just refusing to come out and resurface because they are avoiding arrest. These illegal miners were interviewed. They do confirm what we’ve been saying, that they are heavily armed men, illegal miners down there. So it just goes to show that our intelligence is at work. They are confirming what we have been suspecting,” Mathe said.
Mathe said food sent down to the miners have been confiscated.
“They do tell us as well that the food and water that have been sent down were confiscated by these heavily armed men, and they are not giving it to these illegal miners. They’re keeping it for themselves because they want to continue to continue with the illegal mining operations.
“So all 14 have been arrested. Among the 14 is the 14-yearold boy. All these illegal miners are Mozambican. They have been processed and they are in Saps detention cells. Our operations continue, we stand static. We are aware that they were not expecting us to be there at that time of the night. But our operations are 24/7.
Earlier, Mathe said eleven illegal miners resurfaced at shaft 10 which is linked to shaft 11.
“It proved that they are not trapped – they just refuse to resurface. They chose to come out late at night, thinking police are no more standing static.
“Others ran back into the shaft as soon as they noticed the police presence,” Mathe said.
The exact number of zama zamas underground is not clear.
While some say there are more than 4 000 people underground, police have disputed the figure, saying their intelligence suggests there are only hundreds of illegal miners beneath the earth’s surface.
Last week, the Stilfontein gold mine saga took a twist with reports that an individual attempted to illicit a cut from a team of rescuers at the mine.
North West police on Thursday told The Citizen they are investigating a case of extortion following a demand for a 30% cut of the rescue project.
ALSO READ: Stilfontein mine: Police will still arrest illegal miners after court order
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