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Two suspected cable thieves are behind bars after being caught red-handed in Gonubie in East London by members of a combined team of investigators probing rampant theft in Buffalo City.
City spokesperson, Samnkelo Ngwenya, said this was the second arrest this week.
He said the team of investigators, working for Telkom and Buffalo City Municipality, apprehended the two in Gonubie Main Road on Thursday while they were “digging up underground cables and street lights.”
Another suspect was caught in Amalinda on Wednesday when alert residents raised the alarm after spotting the suspect with road signs and cables.
Ngwenya said looting and vandalism of infrastructure is a serious crime that is bleeding the coffers of the institution.
“The Metro is doubling its efforts to focus on escalating raids on cable theft and illegal connections which will see the Metro saving millions and protecting its infrastructure network,” he said.
Ngwenya said Buffalo City supported the call by the Department of Trade, Industry, and Competition to call for a six-month ban on the export of scrap metal from South Africa.
The Department has gazetted its draft policy proposals to regulate and restrict the trade of scrap metal in South Africa for public comment.
