A Selcourt resident was shocked when she saw her neighbour climb up a pole and do something with the electricity connection recently.
“When I first noticed him, I saw him climbing up the pole and I thought it didn’t look right.
“I’m not sure what he was doing excatly, so I called the police,” says Marina Blom*.
Blom alleges the police were not helpful and were rude.
Furthermore, Blom says despite showing the police the video of the man climbing up the pole, the police said it was not enough evidence and left after a brief chat with the suspect.
When asked if the police’s actions were correct in this case, Springs police spokesperson Capt Johannes Ramphora says the police could not determine what the man was doing.
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“The police were supposed to call the metro and have their people inspect what the man did with the electricity connection.
“Based on what the metro found, then a case could have been opened if he had tampered with the electricity connection.
“We will have to investigate if the metro was called and if they arrived on the scene.
“If they were called and did not arrive, that is a different matter altogether,” says Ramphora.
Metro spokesperson Themba Gadebe says they welcome any information related to grid interference.
“Any tampering or interference with the grid will lead to financial and other penalties. Several arrests take place every month and these cases are further prosecuted in court.
“The metro has policies and by-laws that guide corrective action and the first of these will be to remove the electricity supply.
“Depending on the level of interference, a reinstatement fee of R3 010 will be payable before the connection will be reinstated.
“A second interference event will see a further penalty amounting to an additional R6 020.
“The third amount will be three times the original amount, in addition to the previous amounts,” says Gadebe.
Gadebe went on to say that at any time during the meter audits, an arrest may also take place, leading to court prosecution.
Further to these amounts, the number of units not registered by the meter (stolen) will also be determined and back-billed to the customer. This amount can be in the region of R30 000 per year, or three times that amount, when back-billing is for 36 months.
He ended by saying the metro would look into this specific case and ensure the law takes its course.
The 24-hour call centre number for recording incidents of this nature is 0860 543 000.
*Not person’s real name to protect identity.
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