R3m worth of illegal cable seized in Kya Sand power operation
Residents are urged to be vigilant and report if they notice any suspicious activity around City Power infrastructure.
City Power confiscated more than 20 000kg of aluminium cable, valued at more than R3m, during a joint crackdown on illegal electricity connections in the Pipeline informal settlement in Kya Sand.
The seizure was part of an anti-theft operation aimed at exposing the industrial-scale electricity crime gripping Johannesburg. The high-impact raid, carried out on June 24, was led by City Power’s Revenue Protection team in collaboration with the South African Police Service (SAPS) and Johannesburg Metro Police Department (JMPD). Their mission: to disrupt criminal networks that are sabotaging the city’s electricity infrastructure and depriving residents of a reliable power supply.
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What began as a routine disconnection operation quickly escalated into a major criminal breakthrough. Officials traced a series of illegal hookups and uncovered a 2km underground cable illicitly connected to a City Power mini-substation in Riverbend. The installation is believed to be the work of a well-organised criminal syndicate that has been exploiting vulnerable communities by selling stolen electricity.
City Power CEO Tshifularo Mashava emphasised the seriousness of the situation, stating, “We’re dealing with a syndicate that monetises stolen electricity, charging residents R1 000 for illicit connections and collecting R350 monthly as a fee. They tap into our infrastructure, degrade it, and walk away with the profit while our paying customers suffer.”
The cable seizure followed extensive efforts to eliminate dangerous, makeshift connections in the area. Further investigations revealed that these syndicates frequently tap directly into City Power’s pillar boxes in nearby suburbs, contributing to widespread overloads, blackouts, and costly damage to critical infrastructure.
Mashava stressed that the consequences go far beyond technical faults or revenue losses. Illegal connections pose a direct threat to public safety. “These criminal setups don’t just bleed our network, they endanger lives. Every illegal wire is a potential death trap. We’ve seen children electrocuted, homes set ablaze, and lives cut short. This isn’t just theft. It’s lethal, and it’s unacceptable.”
City Power is now ramping up its crackdown on these criminal syndicates, focusing on identifying and dismantling the masterminds behind the operations. The utility is also strengthening infrastructure protection strategies, deploying Tactical Security Operations, and collaborating with community groups, businesses, the Gauteng government, and private security firms to combat cable theft and illegal connections across its service areas.
“We urge communities to join us in the fight against this scourge of cable theft and vandalism. The crackdown continues, and it will not stop until the syndicates are shut down for good.”
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