EVANDER – There are allegedly at least 300 people being kept captive and made to work as slaves underground at Evander Gold Mine’s closed-down 5 shaft.
This is according to two men who allegedly escaped the mine about three months ago after weeks of apparent slavery.
This eventually sparked an investigation that led to a shootout between the crime intelligence police task team and a group delivering provisions to the miners on Wednesday, 15 August.
One of the men who claimed to have escaped, Mr Allen Chikomba, told the newspaper on Monday that he and some of his relatives were conned into working in the mine.
They hail from Zimbabwe and were looking for work in Springs when a white combi taxi pulled up on the curb where they were standing.
“The men inside the taxi said they could organise work for us on the mines in Mpumalanga and we agreed to go with them to Evander,” said Mr Chikomba.
“It sounded to us like a good work opportunity.”
According to Mr Chikomba, they soon found out that this was no job offer at all.
“As soon as we stopped at our destination, men with guns took hold of us and pushed us into a room where they locked us up.
“The next day they forced us down the mine. These men had many guns and did what they wanted with us.”
Mr Chikomba said he was shocked to find a huge crowd of people in the mine.
“There were so many of them working like slaves. We were forced to mine as well without being paid. If we did not work fast enough, they beat us.”
He said some of the people had been down there for more than two months without having any contact with the outside world.
“We were forced to mine for gold day and night without any payment. We also slept in the mine and received very little food. It was mostly just pap being served once a day.”
According to Mr Chikomba, their “slave masters” allegedly threatened to kill them if they tried to escape.
“I saw how they shot people down there,” Mr Chikomba told the newspaper.
He and a friend who does not want to be identified out of fear of being traced, apparently escaped by slipping away into the dark of the mine tunnels and running until they found another shaft.
They exited the mine at 9 shaft and saw light for the first time in two weeks.
Once they were free, they reported their ordeal to the nearest mine security and were taken to the police.
They told the police that a group of heavily armed men daily supplied food for the people underground.
With this information, the police’s National Intervention Unit, K9 Unit, and Criminal Record and Crime Scene Management, as well as external stakeholders, intercepted the support group last Wednesday.
This led to a shootout during which two gang members were shot and later died in hospital.
Three others were arrested and appeared in the Evander Magistrate’s Court on 20 August on an array of charges ranging from murder to resisting arrest. Their case was postponed to next week.
The police involved in this crime intelligence operation also recovered several firearms and ammunition.
According to Sgt Sibusiso Mbuli, spokesman of the Evander Police, they could not yet confirm whether people are being kept underground.
He said no one has yet been set free as the mine is still under siege by the criminal gang above ground.
Mr Chikomba is worried about his relatives who are currently still trapped in the mine.
“We do not even know if they are still alive.”
Also read:
https://www.citizen.co.za/ridge-times/122296/breaking-news-shootout-police-illegal-miners-evander/
