Community policing leads to arrest of multiple cable thieves in city
Eight suspects were arrested in the city in the span of a week for cable theft and related offences.
POLOKWANE – Increased community policing over the Easter weekend led to multiple cable thieves arrested in affected areas in the city.
Municipal by-law officials arrested a man accused of stealing cables from traffic lights along the Dendron (Mogwadi) road, in-between Emdo Park and Ladanna on Sunday evening.
The next morning, municipal community services and the Westenburg police reacted to a tip-off about an active operation involving multiple suspects who were at a property near the same area, “with a bulk of skinned cables”, according to municipal spokesperson, Thipa Selala.
“Three more arrests were made on the day and cases of theft were opened at Westenburg Police Station,” he added.
Last Thursday, a suspect was caught red-handed while stealing power cables in Biccard Street near the Correctional Service Centre, also by municipal by-law officers.
Another case of cable theft was reported by the Seshego Community Against Crime and Gangsterism forum in Zone 8, where two men were found in the possession of skinned cables and handed over to the police.
A suspect was also arrested in Mankweng last Sunday for reportedly stealing bulk water from a municipal reservoir, using a pipe connected to a water truck. “The suspect’s water tank has been impounded,” Selala confirmed.
Late last year, BONUS reported on areas in the city that are still without streetlights due to cable theft.
At the time, multiple community groups patrolled throughout the night to target perpetrators in the hope of putting an end to cable theft. Trolley runners who live on the streets were prime suspects and had their trolleys and its contents confiscated.
Community Policing Forum Chairperson, Frans Kgasago said there was an increase response to policing with all active members in reflector jackets, handing out awareness pamphlets at strategic points in the city to motorists and pedestrians.
He confirmed that most motorists towed the line in areas such as the D-40-40 T-Junction and the Viking in Ga-Mamabolo.
Even so, he refuted the idea that cable theft suspects may have been desperate for an income due to the declining availability of jobs.
“Do not make your problems other people’s problems. These electricity cables connect to machines that sustain the lives of people in hospitals and households, and even on the roads through traffic lights,” he laments.
