Hawks
A 35-year-old man, believed to be the kingpin behind a theft syndicate targetting a Transnet pipeline, has been arrested along with several other suspects.
They were arrested in Pretoria on Wednesday by a multi-disciplinary task team led by the Hawks in the Free State.
It relates to the theft of fuel and tampering with the Transnet national pipeline at Vrede in the Free State.
National Hawks spokesperson Philani Kwalase says the pipeline is regarded as a national key point.
Today's arrests are a sequel to the arrest of two men at the weekend, and the seizure of a fuel tanker, as they were delivering suspected stolen fuel to an address at Kromdraai in Witbank.
One of them is a Mozambican National and the other is a South African citizen.
The alleged kingpin arrested today is expected to appear in the Witbank Magistrate's court on Thursday.
Kwalase said that almost 8.5 million litres of fuel, valued at approximately R102 m, has been stolen from national Transnet pipes in the last year and that a total of 49 suspects have been arrested to date.
