Scrapyards searched to curb rail crime

Railway mast poles were confiscated at another scrapyard, where the owner was fined for non-compliance of the Second-hand Goods Act.

May 17, 2021

Brakpan Herald 2 minutes read

Sgt Bushy Matlala with copper cable found in a bag.

Brakpan police, the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa), Metrorail, Transnet Freight Rail, Bidvest Protea Coin Response and patrollers from the Department of Community Safety held an awareness campaign in Brakpan last Wednesday morning.

The teams split in two and visited scrapyards to educate owners about railway infrastructural material and the importance of maintaining it.

They also searched the scrapyards for any material that might be from the railways.

“We want the scrapyard owners to know what material comes from the railways so they can avoid buying it. They must also report the sellers to the police,” said Sibongile Makhubu of Transnet.

“They must know that if such materials are found at a scrapyard illegally, then the scrapyard will be closed.”

Two men were apprehended at one of the scrapyards after they were found in possession of what looked to be copper.

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One was charged with not having legal documents to be in South Africa and the other for being in possession of a car that no longer exists on the system.

Representing Metrorail, Duduzile Radebe said material stolen from the rail lines becomes difficult to identify as it is burned and processed.

“When we talk about the rails, we talk about the economy,” said Radebe.

“If people can’t move using trains because of damaged rail tracks, then the economy is affected. We took it upon ourselves to raise awareness and tell scrapyard owners about the material they should and shouldn’t buy.”

Makhubu said Transnet is also affected by the destruction of railway material and theft, as exporting and importing of goods is greatly affected.

“If rails are damaged then trains cannot work and move. If the trains are not working then we cannot work and this can lead to goods getting ruined,” said Makhuba.

“This has a direct negative impact on the economy and people must be taught about the essential infrastructure that must be well taken care of.”

Railway mast poles were confiscated at another scrapyard, where the owner was fined for non-compliance of the Secondhand Goods Act.

“People destroy and steal railway material for scrap material. Hence, we conducted this awareness campaign and check paperwork to make sure scrapyards are operating legally,” said Capt Pearl van Staad, spokesperson for Brakpan SAPS.