Cable thieves sentenced to five years in prison

The Pretoria magistrate’s court sentenced three Zimbabwe nationals to five years in prison each for the possession of copper cables and tampering with essential infrastructure.

The three had been arrested by and detained at the Villieria police station in March this year.

MMC for community safety, Grandi Theunissen said the Tshwane metro welcomed the 10-year sentence each for the cable thieves though half was suspended.

“I would like to commend the continuous efforts by law enforcement officials, particularly our Tshwane metro Cable Theft Unit, and others to protect the metro’s critical infrastructure.

“It is encouraging to see our courts handing appropriate direct imprisonment for cable theft as such sentences send a stern warning to criminals that there are serious consequences to cable theft.

“The direct imprisonment of the criminals should also serve as motivation to our anti-cable theft teams who are working hard to stop the scourge of cable theft.”

Theunissen said that cable theft is a serious crime which often leads to service disruptions such as electricity supply outages, and also affects our already stretched budget as millions of rand are required to replace stolen cables.

Residents are encouraged to report cable theft and/or tampering with the metro’s electrical infrastructure to the TMPD Cable Theft Unit on 012 358 1550 or alternatively visit our dedicated cable theft walk-in service centre in Gezina at the SANAB building on the corner of Frederika and Johan Heyns Street.

All reported information will be treated confidentially.

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