Copper thieves target Pinetown businesses

BUSINESSES situated on Gillitts Road, Pinetown are urging scrapyard owners to be more vigilant, as they could be purchasing stolen goods.

This urgent plea comes after numerous incidents of theft were reported in the area. According to employees of the businesses that have been targeted, it is believed vagrants from the nearby taxi rank are responsible for the recent spate of copper theft.

Gareth Nuttall, owner of Glassfibre Products, said, “This has been an on-going problem. I once viewed camera footage at a scrapyard, and I saw some of my goods on the premises.

“Scrapyard owners will be able to notice if stolen items are being brought in. Owners should ask for some sort of identification before purchasing goods, because by paying for those items they are encouraging theft,” said Nuttall.

Owner of Lord Dent Panelbeaters, John Terry, said, “Our business has been targeted on several occasions. Our meters were stolen and the municipality replaced them with plastic meters. The problem with the plastic meters is that they don’t last for very long and are much harder to maintain. The most recent incident happened last Sunday when copper pipes were stolen from our property. We have spent thousands of Rands to repair the damage.

“We have security measures in place, but they steal the copper and escape so fast that when the security company arrives the criminals have already fled. The thefts normally occur after hours and on weekends.

“These are petty crimes and the police can’t really do much. Therefore, we encourage the community and the scrapyard owners to stick together to combat this growing problem,” said Terry.

Pinetown SAPS communications officer, Lt Bongumusa Manqele, said they were unaware of the above-mentioned incidents. However, the Pinetown SAPS will be investigating the matter further.