Durban — A suspect was arrested for being in possession of copper cable suspected to have been stolen from Transnet.
KwaZulu-Natal Hawks spokesperson Lieutenant-Colonel Simphiwe Mhlongo said that on Monday, Hawks members from the Pietermaritzburg Serious Organised Crime Investigation arrested a 37-year-old suspect for possession of stolen copper cable.
He said that members were alerted about the suspect who was in possession of stolen copper cable in Howick, in the KZN Midlands. They proceeded to a residence and a search was conducted.
“During the search, members found catenary cable suspected to be stolen from Transnet. The street value of the seized cable is approximately R17 000,” Mhlongo said.
He said that the suspect was arrested and charged.
“He is expected to appear in the Howick Magistrate’s Court today (Tuesday),” Mhlongo said.
He added that KZN Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation head, Major-General Lesetja Senona, commended the members for the arrest of the suspect.
Meanwhile, KZN police spokesperson Colonel Robert Netshiunda said that four people, including an illegal scrapyard owner, were arrested in Isipingo on Saturday when Operation Shanela was officially launched in Durban.
Netshiunda said that members of the Economic Infrastructure Task Team gathered intelligence about copper cables which were stored in a cold storage at a truck warehouse in Isipingo.
He said that the intelligence was operationalised and upon arrival, officers discovered that an illegal scrapyard was in operation.
“A search inside the yard resulted in the recovery of copper cables and bus bars amounting to an estimated value of R2.3 million,” Netshiunda said.
“With the owner failing to account for the illegal copper cables and the bus bars stored in his yard, he and other three people who were working at the warehouse were arrested for possession of suspected stolen property. More charges related to economic sabotage are likely to be added as investigations continue.”
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