The aftermath of vandalism: Damage to the Aquila substation in Richards Bay highlights the ongoing battle against cable theft.
Image: City of uMhlathuze
At least three suspects were arrested for malicious damage to property, a major success in the battle against infrastructure vandalism and cable theft in the City of uMhlathuze, following a joint operation with the SAPS and private security.
KwaZulu-Natal police spokesperson, Colonel Robert Netshiunda, said that Richards Bay police arrested three suspects for possession of suspected stolen copper cables.
“Police had opened a case of malicious damage to property after a substation was allegedly damaged by unknown people on Wednesday, April 8,” Netshiunda said.
He said the suspects, aged between 34 and 57, were expected to appear in court on Thursday on charges of possession of suspected stolen property.
“At this stage, police cannot confirm whether the suspects are linked to the malicious damage to property case,” Netshiunda said.
In recent weeks, the Aquila substation in Richards Bay and the Grantham substation in Empangeni were vandalised, leading to power interruptions. All control circuit wiring and protection wiring were vandalised at the Grantham substation, while the Aquila substation was vandalised twice in two weeks.
UMhlathuze Municipality mayor Xolani Ngwezi said: “We applaud SAPS and all stakeholders involved for their swift action. Infrastructure vandalism undermines service delivery, and we remain committed to protecting municipal assets and ensuring that perpetrators face the full might of the law.”
Deputy mayor Christo Botha said: “Gotcha!”
According to the municipality, two suspects were arrested early Wednesday morning while tampering with a municipal mini substation. They were arrested and charged at the scene. Under questioning, they provided details about the storage locations for the stolen cables and substation components.
The municipality said its electrical department confirmed that the recovered materials were components of municipal substation infrastructure, as several vandalism incidents have plagued the City of uMhlathuze in recent weeks.
The municipality also urged residents to report suspicious activity involving municipal infrastructure.
In an interview last month, Ngwezi said he believed the vandalism at the City’s electricity substations was politically motivated.
He said that in one incident, someone who had been apprehended by police was an employee of a security company that is contracted by the municipality. He suspected that some of the employees might be bitter former employees of the electrical department who resigned, and some of them were disciplined.
He said that although he had no proof, the fact that one person employed to guard the infrastructure was found in possession of the same infrastructure he was guarding, it indicated that there is a very big syndicate around this matter.