Major illegal-mining operation yields fruit
Arrests made and equipment seized.
Continuing their fight against the scourge of illegal mining, Roodepoort Police conducted an operation in Matholesville yesterday (16 August).
The operation started at midnight and continued until the morning. Roodepoort Police, Metro Police, K9 unit, Public Order Policing (Pops) and the cluster Visible Policing Unit (Vispol) all took part in the operation.
Also Read: An inside look at illegal mining
One suspect was arrested for the possession of an unlicensed firearm and live ammunition. A large amount of mining equipment was also confiscated, including nine phendukas, 34 x 20l containers of gold dust, five small pot stumpers, three 9kg gas bottles, five 11,5kg gas bottles, six spades, five steel tripods, 36 x 20l empty buckets, eight 20l buckets with towers, three cutting torches, six valve gauges, one 10l bucket containing melting dots and one hammer.
One illegal shebeen was also closed down and nine litres of alcohol confiscated.
Roodepoort Station Commander Brigadier Manala recently told the Record that illegal mining is a major cause of other crimes in Roodepoort.
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