Five constables of Bekkersdal Police who recently foiled seven thieves’ attempts to steal a 10m long copper cable said this should send a strong message to thugs targeting public infrastructure.
In an exclusive interview with the Herald, Constables Phumelele Ngovu, Siyabonga Shange, Nhlanhla Makhuvele, Reabetswe Kojana and Johannes Mokoto said it took courage to prevent the seven suspects from escaping from the scene of their crime as were deemed armed and dangerous. Some of them are known to use violence when fighting for territory against rivals, and regard the police as their enemies.
Read initial article here: Taxi stopped during search: Cops find illegal firearms and copper cable
Mokoto said just when they were about to knock off from their night-long operation in Simunye at around 06:00 on Sunday May 8 they spotted the suspicious white Toyota Quantum in the open veld near Simunye. They suspected that something illegal could be going on and as a team they decided to keep their eyes on it.
“It’s a place known to be targeted by criminals who sometimes fight among themselves. Gunshots are often heard as they fight for territory,” Mokoto said.
“We were about 1km away from the taxi, and patiently waited for everyone to get inside as we wanted to prevent them from running away or shooting from different angles,” Mokoto said.
When they finally stopped the taxi they found seven occupants in the taxi – six of them were Lesotho nationals and the driver was a South African.
We discovered a copper cable, two firearms and equipment believed to have been used to dig up the cable. There were two pickaxes, two spades and a hacksaw.”
He added that police found that one of the firearms had been stolen from Jeppe Police Station in Johannesburg in September 2021; and the other one belonged to a man from Soweto. The matter is still under investigation.
“We’ve also discovered that the owner of the taxi is from Simunye, but the taxi usually transports passengers between Simunye and Westonaria,” Mokoto added.
According to Sergeant Linkie Lefakane, Bekkersdal Police spokesperson, the suspects will be charged with being in possession of an unlicensed firearm and ammunition, possession of copper cable, and possession of breaking implements. They appeared in the Westonaria Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday May 10.
Advocate Karen Pillay, Eskom’s Head of Security said, “Cable theft continuously affects business operations and hampers the provision of basic essential services to industry and to communities.
Such levels of criminality undermine the ability of the state-owned companies to deliver the much-needed services such as electricity, rail, communications and other critical infrastructure.
“This exacerbates localised power cuts and the implementation of load-shedding. This significantly and directly impacts on the recovery of the South African economy,” she said.
Members of the public are encouraged to report any suspicious activities to the Eskom Crime Line number: 0800 11 27 22 or to call the Crime Stop Hotline on 086 00 10111.
